Kirby (NYSE:KEX) Reaches New 52-Week High at $115.82

Kirby Co. (NYSE:KEX)’s share price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $115.82 and last traded at $115.73, with a volume of 53175 shares. The stock had previously closed at $113.33.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Stephens restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $105.00 price target on shares of Kirby in a report on Monday, February 5th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on Kirby from $100.00 to $118.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 19th. BTIG Research boosted their price target on Kirby from $100.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 3rd. StockNews.com raised Kirby from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. Finally, Wolfe Research started coverage on shares of Kirby in a report on Monday, April 22nd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $126.00 price target on the stock. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Kirby currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $116.00.

Kirby Stock Performance

The firm has a market cap of $6.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.79, a P/E/G ratio of 1.77 and a beta of 1.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 1.68 and a quick ratio of 1.01. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $96.58 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $85.19.

Kirby (NYSE:KEX) last released its earnings results on Friday, April 26th. The shipping company reported $1.19 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.97 by $0.22. The company had revenue of $808.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $784.49 million. Kirby had a net margin of 8.01% and a return on equity of 8.00%. Kirby’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.68 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Kirby Co. will post 5.2 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO David W. Grzebinski sold 18,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.44, for a total value of $1,537,920.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 66,399 shares in the company, valued at $5,673,130.56. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other Kirby news, CEO David W. Grzebinski sold 18,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $85.44, for a total value of $1,537,920.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 66,399 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,673,130.56. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Richard Ross Stewart sold 676 shares of Kirby stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $109.60, for a total value of $74,089.60. Following the transaction, the director now owns 23,488 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,574,284.80. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 41,609 shares of company stock valued at $3,792,258. 1.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Kirby

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Kirby in the 4th quarter valued at about $53,000. Fifth Third Bancorp grew its holdings in Kirby by 28.1% in the first quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 551 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $53,000 after purchasing an additional 121 shares during the period. Quest Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Kirby in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $58,000. NBC Securities Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Kirby during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $59,000. Finally, Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda purchased a new position in shares of Kirby during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $165,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.15% of the company’s stock.

About Kirby

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.