Matthews International (NASDAQ:MATW) Cut to “Strong Sell” at Zacks Research

Zacks Research downgraded shares of Matthews International (NASDAQ:MATW) from a hold rating to a strong sell rating in a report released on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

Separately, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Matthews International in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Sell rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Matthews International has an average rating of “Sell”.

Matthews International Stock Up 4.1%

MATW stock opened at $27.28 on Monday. Matthews International has a 12-month low of $18.50 and a 12-month high of $31.12. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 1.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.46. The company has a market cap of $840.22 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -34.53 and a beta of 1.18. The company has a 50 day moving average of $26.15 and a two-hundred day moving average of $24.84.

Matthews International (NASDAQ:MATW) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, November 21st. The company reported $0.50 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.22 by $0.28. Matthews International had a negative net margin of 1.63% and a positive return on equity of 8.65%. The business had revenue of $318.84 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $290.79 million. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Matthews International will post 1.73 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Matthews International Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 1st were issued a dividend of $0.255 per share. This represents a $1.02 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.7%. This is a positive change from Matthews International’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 1st. Matthews International’s dividend payout ratio is currently -129.11%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Matthews International

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in MATW. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in 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 buying an additional 599 shares during the period. US Bancorp DE boosted its holdings in Matthews International by 45.9% during the third quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 2,063 shares of the company’s stock valued at $50,000 after purchasing an additional 649 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of Matthews International in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $59,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC raised its holdings in shares of Matthews International by 187.1% in the 2nd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 2,885 shares of the company’s stock worth $69,000 after buying an additional 1,880 shares in the last quarter. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its holdings in shares of 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 in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.08% of the company’s stock.

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.