Norges Bank Makes New $35.02 Million Investment in Matson, Inc. (NYSE:MATX)

Norges Bank purchased a new position in Matson, Inc. (NYSE:MATX - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 259,683 shares of the shipping company's stock, valued at approximately $35,016,000. Norges Bank owned about 0.78% of Matson as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in MATX. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. lifted its position in shares of Matson by 4.5% in the 4th quarter. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 1,766 shares of the shipping company's stock worth $238,000 after purchasing an additional 76 shares during the period. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Matson by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 16,645 shares of the shipping company's stock worth $2,244,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares during the period. Inspire Investing LLC lifted its position in shares of Matson by 2.9% in the 4th quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 2,972 shares of the shipping company's stock worth $401,000 after purchasing an additional 85 shares during the period. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Matson by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. now owns 28,170 shares of the shipping company's stock worth $3,798,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the period. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in shares of Matson by 12.1% in the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,229 shares of the shipping company's stock worth $166,000 after purchasing an additional 133 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 84.76% of the company's stock.

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Matson Stock Down 3.3 %

Matson stock traded down $3.56 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $104.30. The stock had a trading volume of 68,883 shares, compared to its average volume of 291,346. The company has a quick ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.68 and a beta of 1.12. Matson, Inc. has a 12-month low of $98.98 and a 12-month high of $169.12. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $132.18 and its 200-day moving average price is $139.78.

Matson (NYSE:MATX - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 25th. The shipping company reported $3.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.20 by $0.60. The business had revenue of $890.30 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $851.78 million. Matson had a net margin of 12.37% and a return on equity of 16.89%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Matson, Inc. will post 13.27 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Matson Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 6th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 6th were issued a $0.34 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 6th. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.30%. Matson's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 9.69%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MATX has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on shares of Matson from $150.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Stephens lifted their price target on shares of Matson from $165.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th.

Insider Transactions at Matson

In other news, EVP John P. Lauer sold 7,985 shares of Matson stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $134.73, for a total value of $1,075,819.05. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 25,192 shares in the company, valued at $3,394,118.16. The trade was a 24.07 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, SVP Richard S. Kinney sold 1,997 shares of Matson stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $137.11, for a total transaction of $273,808.67. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 8,425 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,155,151.75. This represents a 19.16 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 2.05% of the company's stock.

About Matson

Matson, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the provision of ocean transportation and logistics services. It operates through two segments, Ocean Transportation and Logistics. The Ocean Transportation segment offers ocean freight transportation services to the domestic non-contiguous economies of Hawaii, Japan, Alaska, and Guam, as well as to other island economies in Micronesia.