Peter Heilmann Sells 13,000 Shares of Matson (NYSE:MATX) Stock

Matson, Inc. (NYSE:MATX) EVP Peter Heilmann sold 13,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $165.46, for a total transaction of $2,150,980.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 32,679 shares in the company, valued at $5,407,067.34. The trade was a 28.46% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link.

Matson Price Performance

NYSE:MATX opened at $158.84 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $151.93 and its two-hundred day moving average is $121.78. The firm has a market cap of $4.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.39 and a beta of 1.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a current ratio of 0.89. Matson, Inc. has a one year low of $86.97 and a one year high of $177.51.

Matson (NYSE:MATX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 24th. The shipping company reported $4.60 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.69 by $0.91. Matson had a return on equity of 16.63% and a net margin of 13.30%.The business had revenue of $851.90 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $847.30 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $3.80 EPS. The company’s revenue was down 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that Matson, Inc. will post 13.27 EPS for the current year.

Matson Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 5th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 5th were given a $0.36 dividend. This represents a $1.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 5th. Matson’s dividend payout ratio is currently 10.33%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Matson

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Matson by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,671,519 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $453,616,000 after purchasing an additional 21,516 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its holdings in Matson by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,982,793 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $244,975,000 after buying an additional 21,463 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its holdings in Matson by 2.9% in the 3rd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,250,636 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $123,300,000 after buying an additional 35,229 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its stake in Matson by 27.9% during the 2nd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 590,763 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $65,770,000 after buying an additional 128,994 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Millennium Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Matson by 144.9% during the third quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 455,133 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $44,872,000 after acquiring an additional 269,310 shares during the last quarter. 84.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on MATX shares. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Matson in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Stephens lifted their price objective on shares of Matson from $190.00 to $213.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, Wolfe Research reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $167.00 price objective on shares of Matson in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $156.25.

Key Headlines Impacting Matson

Here are the key news stories impacting Matson this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Matson posted a quarterly earnings beat (EPS $4.60 vs. ~ $3.69 consensus) and showed healthy margins, supporting underlying fundamentals. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: The company declared a quarterly dividend ($0.36/share, $1.44 annualized), which helps income-oriented holders and signals capital-return discipline. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst support: firms including Stephens raised targets and kept constructive ratings, which can attract institutional buying interest. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Sector/comparative coverage including Matson appeared in broader write-ups; informative but not an immediate catalyst. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Cluster of insider selling: multiple senior executives sold shares on March 3, creating near-term negative sentiment and likely contributing to the stock decline. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Largest single executive sale: EVP Peter T. Heilmann sold 13,000 shares (~$2.15M at ~ $165.46), a sizable block investors often view as a signal to reduce exposure. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Valuation caution: a Seeking Alpha piece flags Matson’s high valuation as a potential headwind, which can amplify selling from valuation-sensitive investors. Read More.

Matson Company 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.