Matthews International (NASDAQ:MATW) Trading Up 7.3% – Here’s Why

Shares of Matthews International Co. (NASDAQ:MATW) rose 7.3% during trading on Friday . The company traded as high as $27.15 and last traded at $26.79. Approximately 58,294 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 77% from the average daily volume of 258,238 shares. The stock had previously closed at $24.97.

Matthews International Stock Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $796.86 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -13.06 and a beta of 1.14. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $28.57 and its 200 day simple moving average is $26.05. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 1.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.76.

Matthews International (NASDAQ:MATW) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $0.14 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.26 by ($0.12). Matthews International had a negative net margin of 3.48% and a positive return on equity of 12.42%. On average, equities research analysts expect that Matthews International Co. will post 2 earnings per share for the current year.

Matthews International Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 24th. Investors of record on Monday, February 10th will be paid a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 10th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.89%. Matthews International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -50.76%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Matthews International

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of MATW. Quadrant Capital Group LLC increased its position in Matthews International by 551.8% during the fourth quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 906 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 767 shares during the period. Sterling Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Matthews International by 797.2% during the 4th quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 951 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 845 shares in the last quarter. KBC Group NV increased its holdings in shares of Matthews International by 63.7% during the third quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,937 shares of the company’s stock worth $45,000 after purchasing an additional 754 shares during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its position in shares of Matthews International by 1,865.1% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 4,500 shares of the company’s stock valued at $125,000 after buying an additional 4,271 shares in the last quarter. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its stake in shares of Matthews International by 7.7% in the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 6,602 shares of the company’s stock valued at $153,000 after buying an additional 471 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.08% of the company’s stock.

About Matthews International

Matthews International Corporation provides brand solutions, memorialization products, and industrial technologies worldwide. It operates through three segments: Memorialization, Industrial Technologies, and SGK Brand Solutions. The Memorialization segment provides bronze and granite memorials, upright granite memorials and monuments, concrete burial vaults, cremation memorialization products, granite benches, flower vases, crypt plates and letters, cremation urns, niche units, cemetery features, and statues, as well as bronze plaques, letters, emblems, vases, lights and photo ceramics, granite monuments, mausoleums, crypts, and flush memorials.