Wedge Capital Management L L P NC Sells 4,872 Shares of Matson, Inc. $MATX

Wedge Capital Management L L P NC decreased its position in Matson, Inc. (NYSE:MATX) by 5.5% during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 84,392 shares of the shipping company’s stock after selling 4,872 shares during the quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC owned approximately 0.28% of Matson worth $16,223,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Danske Bank A S bought a new stake in shares of Matson in the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Headlands Technologies LLC purchased a new position in shares of Matson during the second quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC bought a new position in Matson in the 3rd quarter worth about $30,000. SouthState Bank Corp bought a new position in Matson in the 4th quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in Matson by 57.3% during the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 258 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 94 shares during the last quarter. 84.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Matson Stock Performance

MATX opened at $204.97 on Wednesday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $202.49 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $180.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a current ratio of 0.89 and a quick ratio of 0.89. The firm has a market cap of $6.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.70 and a beta of 1.27. Matson, Inc. has a 1-year low of $86.97 and a 1-year high of $230.74.

Matson (NYSE:MATX) last released its earnings results on Monday, August 3rd. The shipping company reported $4.27 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.79 by $0.48. The company had revenue of $969.40 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $893.91 million. Matson had a net margin of 13.41% and a return on equity of 16.94%. Matson’s revenue for the quarter was up 16.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.92 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Matson, Inc. will post 16.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Matson Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 3rd. Investors of record on Thursday, August 6th will be issued a $0.38 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 6th. This represents a $1.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.7%. This is a boost from Matson’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.36. Matson’s payout ratio is presently 10.16%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have issued reports on MATX shares. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Matson from a “hold (c)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Thursday, August 6th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Matson from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Matson from $230.00 to $270.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th. Stephens boosted their price objective on shares of Matson from $240.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Matson from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and four have given a Buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $232.33.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Matson news, SVP Laura L. Rascon sold 2,800 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $188.53, for a total transaction of $527,884.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 15,656 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,951,625.68. This trade represents a 15.17% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Christopher A. Scott sold 1,520 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $181.05, for a total transaction of $275,196.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 9,708 shares in the company, valued at $1,757,633.40. This trade represents a 13.54% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 6,060 shares of company stock worth $1,121,012 in the last three months. 2.51% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Matson Profile

Matson, Inc (NYSE: MATX) is a U.S.-based provider of ocean transportation and supply chain logistics services with a focus on Pacific trade lanes. The company operates a fleet of container ships that regularly service Hawaii, Alaska, Guam, Micronesia and other Pacific islands, as well as mainland U.S. ports. Matson’s ocean transportation segment offers scheduled liner services, expedited shipping options and specialized project cargo handling for industries ranging from retail to heavy machinery.

In addition to its core liner operations, Matson offers ocean transportation services between Asia and the U.S.