Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Matson (NYSE:MATX – Free Report) from a hold rating to a strong-buy rating in a research report released on Saturday morning,Wall Street Zen reports.
Other research analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. Freedom Broker started coverage on Matson in a report on Wednesday, September 30th. They set a “buy” rating and a $260.00 price objective on the stock. Weiss Ratings upgraded Matson from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Matson from $270.00 to $310.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 13th. Zacks Research cut Matson from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, October 5th. Finally, Stephens boosted their target price on Matson from $270.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $259.25.
Get Our Latest Stock Analysis on MATX
Matson Trading Down 1.1%
Shares of NYSE MATX opened at $211.62 on Friday. Matson has a 1-year low of $101.98 and a 1-year high of $240.87. The company has a 50-day moving average of $227.17 and a two-hundred day moving average of $194.38. The company has a market cap of $6.33 billion, a PE ratio of 11.97 and a beta of 1.33. The company has a current ratio of 1.10, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10.
Matson (NYSE:MATX – Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 4th. The shipping company reported $6.96 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.27 by $0.69. The business had revenue of $1.11 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.07 billion. Matson had a net margin of 14.58% and a return on equity of 19.25%. Matson’s revenue was up 26.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $4.24 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that Matson will post 18.90 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
Matson Dividend Announcement
The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 3rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 5th will be given a dividend of $0.38 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 5th. This represents a $1.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.7%. Matson’s payout ratio is currently 8.60%.
Insider Buying and Selling at Matson
In related news, EVP Christopher Scott sold 600 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $219.90, for a total value of $131,940.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 9,354 shares in the company, valued at $2,056,944.60. This represents a 6.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, SVP Leonard Isotoff sold 1,250 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $208.30, for a total transaction of $260,375.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 6,527 shares in the company, valued at $1,359,574.10. This represents a 16.07% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 12,462 shares of company stock valued at $2,695,832 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 2.51% of the company’s stock.
Institutional Inflows and Outflows
Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Matson during the second quarter worth about $952,903,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new position in shares of Matson in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $50,637,000. Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec acquired a new position in shares of Matson in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $45,796,000. Retirement Planning Group LLC grew its position in shares of Matson by 12,239.4% in the 3rd quarter. Retirement Planning Group LLC now owns 233,584 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $51,304,000 after purchasing an additional 231,691 shares during the period. Finally, Encompass Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Matson during the 1st quarter worth approximately $32,761,000. 84.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.
More Matson News
Here are the key news stories impacting Matson this week:
- Positive Sentiment: Q3 EPS was $6.96, beating the $6.27 consensus estimate, while revenue of $1.11 billion exceeded expectations and rose 26.5% year over year. China service strength contributed to the results. Matson Q3 2026: China Service Drives an 11% EPS Beat and Bullish Q4 Outlook
- Positive Sentiment: Management expects Q4 operating income to be about 50% higher, with elevated China freight rates expected to persist into early 2027—supporting expectations for continued earnings strength. Matson expects Q4 operating income about 50% higher
- Positive Sentiment: Stephens raised its price target from $270 to $300 and maintained an Overweight rating, signaling increased analyst optimism. Stephens stock recommendations
- Neutral Sentiment: Call highlights pointed to China demand, port congestion, and e-commerce as factors supporting performance, though the reports do not explain why the stock has recently traded lower. Matson Earnings Call Highlights China Strength and Cash Flow
About Matson
Matson, Inc is a transportation and logistics company that provides ocean shipping and supply chain services. Through its Matson Navigation subsidiary, the company transports containerized and bulk cargo, automobiles and other goods between the U.S. mainland and Hawaii, Alaska, Guam, Micronesia and selected South Pacific destinations. Matson also operates services linking the U.S. West Coast with China, Japan and South Korea.
The company serves a broad range of customers, including retailers, manufacturers, wholesalers, government agencies and individual consumers.
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