Kirby Corporation $KEX Shares Purchased by Comerica Bank

Comerica Bank raised its stake in shares of Kirby Corporation (NYSE:KEX) by 38.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 22,659 shares of the shipping company’s stock after buying an additional 6,319 shares during the period. Comerica Bank’s holdings in Kirby were worth $2,497,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Maseco LLP acquired a new position in Kirby during the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. First Horizon Corp acquired a new position in Kirby during the 3rd quarter valued at about $30,000. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC increased its stake in Kirby by 559.3% during the 3rd quarter. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC now owns 567 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $47,000 after buying an additional 481 shares during the period. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Kirby during the 3rd quarter valued at about $53,000. Finally, FNY Investment Advisers LLC bought a new position in shares of Kirby during the 3rd quarter valued at about $56,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.15% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Kirby news, CFO Raj Kumar sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $132.70, for a total value of $398,100.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 4,494 shares in the company, valued at $596,353.80. This trade represents a 40.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO David W. Grzebinski sold 34,152 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $130.05, for a total transaction of $4,441,467.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 98,241 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,776,242.05. The trade was a 25.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 66,066 shares of company stock valued at $8,563,835. Company insiders own 0.80% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on KEX shares. Evercore restated an “outperform” rating and set a $158.00 price objective on shares of Kirby in a research report on Friday. Wolfe Research restated an “outperform” rating and set a $136.00 price objective on shares of Kirby in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Kirby from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Friday. BTIG Research raised their price objective on shares of Kirby from $160.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Citigroup raised their price objective on shares of Kirby from $147.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Kirby presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $146.20.

Kirby Stock Performance

NYSE:KEX opened at $143.21 on Wednesday. Kirby Corporation has a twelve month low of $79.51 and a twelve month high of $157.69. The company has a current ratio of 1.53, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The company has a 50-day moving average of $136.44 and a 200-day moving average of $121.28. The firm has a market cap of $7.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 0.85.

Kirby (NYSE:KEX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The shipping company reported $1.50 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.41 by $0.09. Kirby had a net margin of 10.51% and a return on equity of 10.65%. The company had revenue of $844.10 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $832.57 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.33 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.4% on a year-over-year basis. Kirby has set its FY 2026 guidance at 6.650-7.280 EPS. Analysts forecast that Kirby Corporation will post 6.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

About Kirby

Kirby Corporation is a leading domestic maritime transporter of bulk liquid products in the United States. Through its Marine Transportation segment, the company operates one of North America’s largest fleets of inland tank barges and towing vessels. Kirby’s fleet moves petrochemicals, black oil, refined petroleum products and agricultural chemicals along coastal and inland waterways, providing critical logistical support to energy, chemical and agricultural producers.

In addition to its marine operations, Kirby’s Distribution and Services segment offers diesel engine and power generation services, along with aftermarket parts sales.