Kirby (NYSE:KEX) Stock Rating Lowered by StockNews.com

StockNews.com cut shares of Kirby (NYSE:KEX) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note released on Sunday morning.

Separately, Bank of America lifted their target price on Kirby from $138.00 to $141.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $123.80.

Kirby Stock Performance

Shares of Kirby stock opened at $123.45 on Friday. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $118.42 and a 200 day simple moving average of $112.93. Kirby has a one year low of $72.11 and a one year high of $130.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 1.70 and a quick ratio of 1.05. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.18, a PEG ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 1.17.

Kirby (NYSE:KEX) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The shipping company reported $1.43 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.32 by $0.11. Kirby had a return on equity of 8.70% and a net margin of 8.72%. The company had revenue of $824.40 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $821.65 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.95 earnings per share. Kirby’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts anticipate that Kirby will post 5.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Kirby

In other news, CEO David W. Grzebinski sold 26,358 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $120.46, for a total value of $3,175,084.68. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 63,399 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,637,043.54. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In related news, COO Christian G. O’neil sold 2,770 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $110.21, for a total transaction of $305,281.70. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 16,079 shares in the company, valued at $1,772,066.59. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO David W. Grzebinski sold 26,358 shares of Kirby stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $120.46, for a total transaction of $3,175,084.68. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 63,399 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,637,043.54. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 46,012 shares of company stock worth $5,571,267. Insiders own 1.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Kirby

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC grew its holdings in Kirby by 17.8% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC now owns 4,516 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $354,000 after purchasing an additional 684 shares during the period. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC grew its stake in shares of Kirby by 18.6% during the 4th quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 10,247 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $804,000 after acquiring an additional 1,610 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Kirby in the 4th quarter worth about $51,781,000. Quest Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Kirby in the 4th quarter worth about $58,000. Finally, Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC raised its stake in Kirby by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC now owns 17,847 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $1,388,000 after acquiring an additional 124 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.15% of the company’s stock.

Kirby Company Profile

Kirby Corporation operates domestic tank barges in the United States. Its Marine Transportation segment provides marine transportation service and towing vessel transporting bulk liquid product, as well as operates tank barge throughout the Mississippi River System, on the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway, coastwise along three United States coasts, and in Alaska and Hawaii.