Matthews International (NASDAQ:MATW) Shares Gap Down – Here’s What Happened

Matthews International Corporation (NASDAQ:MATW) gapped down prior to trading on Monday . The stock had previously closed at $27.97, but opened at $26.54. Matthews International shares last traded at $26.5550, with a volume of 5,655 shares changing hands.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on MATW. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Matthews International in a report on Thursday. Zacks Research downgraded Matthews International from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Monday, January 19th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Sell rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, Matthews International presently has a consensus rating of “Sell”.

Matthews International Stock Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $828.11 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -33.68 and a beta of 1.18. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $26.22 and its 200 day simple moving average is $24.88. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 1.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.46.

Matthews International (NASDAQ:MATW) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, November 21st. The company reported $0.50 earnings per share 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 analysts’ expectations of $290.79 million. Matthews International had a positive return on equity of 8.65% and a negative net margin of 1.63%. On average, equities research analysts expect that Matthews International Corporation will post 1.73 earnings per share for the current year.

Matthews International Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 15th. Investors of record on Monday, December 1st were given a dividend of $0.255 per share. This is an increase from Matthews International’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. This represents a $1.02 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 1st. Matthews International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -129.11%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Matthews International

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. boosted its stake in Matthews International by 4.6% in the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 17,686 shares of the company’s stock valued at $393,000 after buying an additional 780 shares in the last quarter. Jane Street Group LLC bought a new stake in Matthews International during the first quarter valued at $1,227,000. Intech Investment Management LLC raised its position in shares of Matthews International by 316.4% in the 1st quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 59,502 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,323,000 after acquiring an additional 45,212 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in shares of Matthews International by 55.1% in the 2nd 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 period. Finally, State of Alaska Department of Revenue boosted its position in shares of Matthews International by 7.2% during the 2nd quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 18,403 shares of the company’s stock valued at $439,000 after purchasing an additional 1,243 shares in the last quarter. 83.08% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.