MATX vs SFL vs KEX Stock Comparison

Matson, Sfl and Kirby Prices as of Nov 2, 2026 Peers: Industry group
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MATX Matson, Inc.
$220.77 -4.4% 1M +118.7% 1Y
Market cap
$6.60B
P/E
14.3x
Revenue (TTM)
$3.46B
Div. yield
0.66%
Marine Shipping Industrials
7 wins
SFL SFL Corp Ltd.
$12.19 -9.4% 1M +63.4% 1Y
Market cap
$1.76B
P/E
25.4x
Revenue (TTM)
$728.96M
Div. yield
6.89%
Marine Shipping Industrials
1 win
KEX Kirby Corp
$140.64 +2.0% 1M +35.9% 1Y
Market cap
$7.43B
P/E
21.1x
Revenue (TTM)
$3.49B
Div. yield
–
Marine Shipping Industrials
4 wins

Head to Head

12 decided of 12

Matson leads on 7 of the 12 questions below (Matson 7, Kirby 4, Sfl 1). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionMATXSFLKEXLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $6.60B $1.76B $7.43B KEX
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 14.3x 25.4x 21.1x MATX
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 12.6x 22.2x 20.5x MATX
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months -0.2% -15.6% +6.6% KEX
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 13.4% 8.8% 10.2% MATX
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 14.3% 5.8% 8.3% MATX
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 0.3x 5.1x 1.3x MATX
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.66% 6.89% — SFL
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months +118.7% +63.4% +35.9% MATX
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years +20.4%/yr +9.0%/yr +19.6%/yr MATX
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 34.6% 31.6% 26.7% KEX
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 46/100 45/100 63/100 KEX

Percentile Scorecard

MATXSFLKEX

Each axis is the mean percentile of its metrics against the company's industry group. 100 is the best in the group, 50 the middle.

Scores by Axis

AxisMATXSFLKEX
Valuation 33 #92 of 137 40 #82 of 137 38 #85 of 137
Growth 22 #97 of 124 29 #89 of 124 80 #26 of 124
Profitability 61 #48 of 122 57 #53 of 122 55 #55 of 122
Financial Health 70 #45 of 147 13 #128 of 147 64 #54 of 147
Shareholder Returns 45 #47 of 85 87 #12 of 85 79 #19 of 85
Overall 46 45 63
  • MATX ranked among 150 companies in Transportation
  • SFL ranked among 150 companies in Transportation
  • KEX ranked among 150 companies in Transportation

Price Performance

Price return, split-adjusted, before dividends. Click a name to hide or show it.

Returns

PeriodMATXSFLKEXSPY
1 month -4.4%-9.4%+2.0% -2.3%
3 months +6.4%-1.5%+7.8% -0.7%
6 months +29.2%+4.9%-2.7% +4.8%
Year to date +78.7%+56.1%+27.6% +10.3%
1 year +118.7%+63.4%+35.9% +10.3%
3 years +149.0%+8.8%+80.0% +73.0%
3 years, per year +35.6%+2.9%+21.7% +20.1%
5 years +153.2%+53.5%+144.2% +61.9%
5 years, per year +20.4%+9.0%+19.6% +10.1%
10 years +455.7%-1.3%+133.2% +258.6%
10 years, per year +18.7%-0.1%+8.8% +13.6%

Risk

MeasureMATXSFLKEXSPY
Volatility, 1Y 34.6%31.6%26.7% 12.8%
Downside volatility, 1Y 26.3%30.5%27.3% 12.8%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 0.990.400.60 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y 3.432.011.35 0.80
Max drawdown, 5Y -54.4%-52.6%-38.8% -25.4%
From 52-week high -7.0%-11.3%-7.8% -3.5%
52-week high $237.28$13.74$152.59 $779.14
52-week low $98.07$7.32$104.35 $631.97

Valuation History

Weekly multiples on trailing twelve-month fundamentals. Negative or extreme readings (a loss year, a collapsed denominator) are left out so the chart stays readable.

MultipleMATXSFLKEX
P/E now vs peer median 14.3xmedian 16.1x 25.4xmedian 16.1x 21.1xmedian 16.1x
P/S now vs peer median 1.9xmedian 0.9x 2.4xmedian 0.9x 2.1xmedian 0.9x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 9.4xmedian 8.1x 9.1xmedian 8.1x 11.1xmedian 8.1x
P/FCF now vs peer median 59.6xmedian 11.4x 7.3xmedian 11.4x 15.6xmedian 11.4x
P/B now vs peer median 2.4xmedian 1.2x 1.7xmedian 1.2x 2.2xmedian 1.2x
PEG now vs peer median 2.39median 0.75 -1.38median 0.75 0.67median 0.75

Financial History

Reported figures by fiscal period, placed on the calendar year (or quarter) each period ended in, so companies with different fiscal years line up.

Trailing twelve monthsMATXSFLKEX
Revenue $3.46B $728.96M $3.49B
Gross profit – $447.70M $1.16B
Operating income $525.00M $202.11M $488.92M
Net income $463.80M $63.85M $355.89M
Free cash flow $110.70M $240.81M $475.58M
EPS (diluted) $15.31 $0.48 $6.62
Cash & equivalents $119.30M $113.10M $38.96M
Total debt $332.40M $2.38B $1.04B
Shares (diluted) 30.30M 133.06M 53.70M
Enterprise value $6.15B $1.08B $7.21B

All Metrics

58 metrics · best in bold

Bold marks the best reading: the lowest positive value for multiples, leverage and payout, the highest for everything else. The bar under each value is its percentile against that company's own peers. Hover a value for its rank and the peer median.

Valuation

12 metrics
MetricMATXSFLKEX
P/E 14.3x 25.4x 21.1x
P/FCF 59.6x 7.3x 15.6x
P/Operating cash flow 11.3x 7.3x 10.5x
P/S 1.9x 2.4x 2.1x
P/B 2.4x 1.7x 2.2x
P/Tangible book 2.5x 1.7x 2.2x
EV/EBITDA 9.4x 9.1x 11.1x
EV/EBIT 13.0x 20.0x 17.2x
EV/Revenue 2.0x 5.5x 2.4x
EV/FCF 61.6x 16.8x 17.7x
EV/Operating cash flow 11.7x 16.8x 11.9x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 2.39 -1.38 0.67

Growth

14 metrics
MetricMATXSFLKEX
Revenue growth (1Y) -0.2% -15.6% 6.6%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 0.6% 1.2% 5.1%
Gross profit growth (1Y) – -11.3% 5.0%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) – 0.1% 11.8%
Operating income growth (1Y) -10.2% -6.1% 18.0%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) -2.3% -5.8% 22.6%
Net income growth (1Y) -6.1% 86.1% 17.2%
Net income CAGR (3Y) 0.4% -19.3% 26.8%
EPS growth (1Y) 0.4% 81.8% 23.2%
EPS CAGR (3Y) 6.0% -18.5% 31.6%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) -5.5% -27.3% 21.4%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) -11.0% -16.9% 18.5%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) -57.0% -27.3% 82.1%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) -42.1% 38.6% 43.3%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricMATXSFLKEX
Gross margin – 61.4% 33.2%
EBITDA margin 21.0% 60.7% 21.8%
Operating margin 15.2% 27.7% 14.0%
Pretax margin 15.9% 9.0% 13.5%
Net margin 13.4% 8.8% 10.2%
FCF margin 3.2% 33.0% 13.6%
Operating cash flow margin 16.9% 33.0% 20.3%
Return on equity 16.9% 6.5% 10.4%
Return on assets 10.0% 1.8% 5.8%
Return on invested capital 14.3% 5.8% 8.3%
Return on capital employed 13.0% 7.0% 9.0%
Asset turnover 0.7x 0.2x 0.6x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 1.3x 3.8x 2.0x
Stock comp / revenue 0.7% – 0.5%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricMATXSFLKEX
Debt / assets 7.1% 67.8% 16.7%
Debt / equity 0.1x 2.3x 0.3x
Net debt / EBITDA 0.3x 5.1x 1.3x
Debt / FCF 3.0x 9.9x 2.2x
Liabilities / assets 41.2% 70.6% 44.6%
Equity / assets 58.8% 29.4% 55.4%
Interest coverage 79.5x 14.6x 11.0x
Current ratio 0.9x 0.4x 1.7x
Quick ratio 0.8x 0.4x 1.0x
Cash ratio 0.2x 0.2x 0.1x
Altman Z-score 3.86 – 3.31

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricMATXSFLKEX
Dividend yield 0.7% 6.9% –
Net buyback yield 4.0% – 4.4%
Shareholder yield 4.6% 6.9% 4.4%
Payout ratio (earnings) 9.6% – –
Payout ratio (FCF) 40.3% – –
Dividend growth (1Y) -0.9% – –
Dividend CAGR (3Y) -0.6% – –

Analyst Estimates

Solid lines are reported fiscal-year results; dashed lines are the consensus for the years ahead. Hover a year for the analysts' high and low, and how each result compared with its estimate.

ConsensusMATXSFLKEX
Forward P/E 12.6xFY2026 22.2xFY2026 20.5xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $17.50FY2026 $0.55FY2026 $6.86FY2026
EPS growth, next FY +26.7%FY2026 +450.0%FY2026 +8.4%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after -8.5% +76.4% +29.0%
Revenue, next fiscal year $3.45BFY2026 $691.35MFY2026 $3.49BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +3.2%FY2026 -5.7%FY2026 +4.0%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +6.1% +19.5% +4.7%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersMATXSFLKEX
Held by institutions 86.3% 43.5% 99.6%
Institutions holding 429 223 466
Change in shares held, QoQ +0.4% +15.8% -0.1%
Institutions buying 213 133 252
Institutions selling 134 55 145
Buyers to sellers 1.59 2.42 1.74

Return Correlation

Daily returns, last 12 months

1.00 means two stocks move in lockstep, 0 that they move independently. Pairs below about 0.5 diversify each other.

MATXSFLKEX
MATX 1.00 0.26 0.37
SFL 0.26 1.00 0.24
KEX 0.37 0.24 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, MATX, SFL and KEX?

Kirby (KEX) is the largest by market capitalisation: Matson (MATX) $6.60B, Sfl (SFL) $1.76B, Kirby (KEX) $7.43B.

Which stock is cheaper, MATX, SFL and KEX?

Matson (MATX) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Matson (MATX) 14.3x, Sfl (SFL) 25.4x, Kirby (KEX) 21.1x). On next year's consensus earnings, Matson (MATX) is cheapest (Matson (MATX) 12.6x, Sfl (SFL) 22.2x, Kirby (KEX) 20.5x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

Kirby (KEX) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Matson (MATX) -0.2%, Sfl (SFL) -15.6%, Kirby (KEX) +6.6%.

Which company is more profitable?

Matson (MATX) has the highest net margin (Matson (MATX) 13.4%, Sfl (SFL) 8.8%, Kirby (KEX) 10.2%). On return on invested capital, Matson (MATX) leads (Matson (MATX) 14.3%, Sfl (SFL) 5.8%, Kirby (KEX) 8.3%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Matson (MATX) returned the most: Matson (MATX) +118.7%, Sfl (SFL) +63.4%, Kirby (KEX) +35.9%. Over five years, Matson (MATX) compounded fastest (Matson (MATX) +20.4%/yr, Sfl (SFL) +9.0%/yr, Kirby (KEX) +19.6%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

Sfl (SFL) has the highest dividend yield: Matson (MATX) 0.66%, Sfl (SFL) 6.89%. Kirby (KEX) pays no regular dividend.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Kirby (KEX) has been the steadiest (Matson (MATX) 34.6%, Sfl (SFL) 31.6%, Kirby (KEX) 26.7%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, MATX, SFL and KEX?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, Matson (MATX) leads on 7. Business Quant does not give investment advice; use the comparison as a starting point for your own research.

Data from SEC filings, exchange prices and consensus estimates, via Business Quant. Percentile scores compare each company with its own peer group, so two companies' scores are each relative to different peers unless you rank against the whole market. Price returns exclude dividends. Nothing on this page is investment advice.