Kirby (NYSE:KEX) Stock Rating Upgraded by Wall Street Zen

Kirby (NYSE:KEX) was upgraded by research analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note issued on Saturday, Wall Street Zen reports.

KEX has been the topic of a number of other reports. BTIG Research reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $170.00 target price on shares of Kirby in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Kirby from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Monday, September 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Kirby from $200.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 29th. Stephens raised their price target on shares of Kirby from $170.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 29th. Finally, Citigroup reduced their price target on shares of Kirby from $170.00 to $169.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 8th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $171.43.

Kirby Stock Down 0.1%

Shares of KEX opened at $120.88 on Friday. Kirby has a 52-week low of $105.10 and a 52-week high of $157.69. The company has a quick ratio of 1.12, a current ratio of 1.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $136.45 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $136.72. The company has a market capitalization of $6.38 billion, a PE ratio of 17.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.06 and a beta of 0.81.

Kirby (NYSE:KEX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 28th. The shipping company reported $2.09 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.00 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $977.21 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $938.84 million. Kirby had a net margin of 10.39% and a return on equity of 10.94%. The company’s revenue was up 12.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.65 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Kirby will post 7.26 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Kirby

In other news, CEO David Grzebinski sold 18,310 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, November 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $141.32, for a total transaction of $2,587,569.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 79,931 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,295,848.92. This represents a 18.64% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.80% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Kirby

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Procyon Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Kirby by 2.9% during the first quarter. Procyon Advisors LLC now owns 2,811 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $374,000 after purchasing an additional 78 shares in the last quarter. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Kirby by 18.2% in the first quarter. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC now owns 520 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $69,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares during the period. Kestra Advisory Services LLC boosted its stake in shares of Kirby by 1.3% in the third quarter. Kestra Advisory Services LLC now owns 6,715 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $881,000 after purchasing an additional 88 shares during the period. Provenance Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Kirby in the third quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Finally, Nisa Investment Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Kirby by 3.8% in the third quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 5,823 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $764,000 after purchasing an additional 214 shares in the last quarter. 96.15% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Kirby Company Profile

Kirby Corporation is a marine transportation and services company founded in 1921 and headquartered in Houston, Texas. Its marine transportation business moves bulk liquid products by tank barge and towboat across U.S. inland waterways and along the coast. Cargoes include petrochemicals, refined petroleum products and other industrial liquids.

The company also provides coastal marine transportation, serving customers in U.S. coastal markets. Its vessels and barges support the movement of liquid commodities between ports and other destinations.

Through its distribution and services business, Kirby sells and services diesel engines, transmissions, reduction gears, pumps and related equipment.