Matthews International Corporation (NASDAQ:MATW) Short Interest Down 24.4% in December

Matthews International Corporation (NASDAQ:MATW) saw a large decline in short interest during the month of December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totaling 2,110,917 shares, a decline of 24.4% from the December 15th total of 2,792,325 shares. Approximately 7.1% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 265,802 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 7.9 days. Based on an average daily volume of 265,802 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 7.9 days. Approximately 7.1% of the shares of the stock are sold short.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Matthews International in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Sell rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Sell”.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of MATW. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in shares of Matthews International by 55.1% in the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,687 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 599 shares during the last quarter. US Bancorp DE boosted its stake in Matthews International by 45.9% during the 3rd quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 2,063 shares of the company’s stock valued at $50,000 after purchasing an additional 649 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC acquired a new stake in Matthews International in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $59,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC grew its holdings in Matthews International by 187.1% in the 2nd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 2,885 shares of the company’s stock valued at $69,000 after buying an additional 1,880 shares during the last quarter. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its position in Matthews International by 51.6% in the 2nd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 3,080 shares of the company’s stock worth $74,000 after buying an additional 1,048 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.08% of the company’s stock.

Matthews International Stock Down 4.6%

NASDAQ:MATW traded down $1.33 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $27.36. The stock had a trading volume of 264,984 shares, compared to its average volume of 202,325. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.46, a current ratio of 1.48 and a quick ratio of 0.91. Matthews International has a fifty-two week low of $18.50 and a fifty-two week high of $31.94. The business’s 50 day moving average is $25.95 and its 200 day moving average is $24.81. The stock has a market cap of $842.69 million, a P/E ratio of 21.71 and a beta of 1.18.

Matthews International (NASDAQ:MATW) last posted its earnings results on Friday, November 21st. The company reported $0.50 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.22 by $0.28. The firm had revenue of $318.84 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $290.79 million. Matthews International had a negative net margin of 1.63% and a positive return on equity of 8.65%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Matthews International will post 1.73 earnings per share for the current year.

Matthews International Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 15th. Investors of record on Monday, December 1st were paid a $0.255 dividend. This represents a $1.02 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.7%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 1st. This is a boost from Matthews International’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. Matthews International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -129.11%.

Matthews International Company Profile

Matthews International Corporation (NASDAQ:MATW) is a diversified industrial company headquartered in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The company operates through two primary business segments—Brand Solutions and Memorialization—offering a broad range of products and services designed to meet the needs of industrial manufacturers, brand marketers and the funeral industry worldwide.

In its Brand Solutions segment, Matthews International provides engraving and digital printing systems, automated finishing equipment, thermal management products and electronics assembly solutions.