Christian O’neil Sells 11,145 Shares of Kirby (NYSE:KEX) Stock

Kirby Corporation (NYSE:KEX) COO Christian O’neil sold 11,145 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $111.68, for a total value of $1,244,673.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 14,835 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,656,772.80. This represents a 42.90% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink.

Kirby Trading Up 0.0%

Shares of Kirby stock opened at $110.84 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $6.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.56, a P/E/G ratio of 1.08 and a beta of 0.87. The company has a quick ratio of 1.08, a current ratio of 1.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31. Kirby Corporation has a 12-month low of $79.51 and a 12-month high of $122.50. The business’s 50 day moving average is $106.39 and its 200-day moving average is $102.18.

Kirby (NYSE:KEX) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 29th. The shipping company reported $1.65 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.60 by $0.05. Kirby had a net margin of 9.22% and a return on equity of 10.05%. The business had revenue of $871.16 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $843.29 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.55 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that Kirby Corporation will post 6.57 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Kirby from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 3rd. Bank of America dropped their price objective on Kirby from $110.00 to $107.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, September 3rd. Citigroup lifted their target price on Kirby from $128.00 to $131.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 19th. Wall Street Zen raised Kirby from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, November 1st. Finally, BTIG Research reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $125.00 price target on shares of Kirby in a report on Thursday, September 18th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Kirby currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $124.00.

Institutional Trading of Kirby

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Voya Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Kirby by 19.0% in the 1st quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC now owns 292,236 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $29,519,000 after purchasing an additional 46,673 shares in the last quarter. Luminus Management LLC lifted its stake in Kirby by 292.0% in the 3rd quarter. Luminus Management LLC now owns 116,956 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $9,760,000 after purchasing an additional 87,120 shares during the last quarter. Bailard Inc. acquired a new stake in Kirby in the second quarter valued at approximately $692,000. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS grew its stake in shares of Kirby by 72.7% during the second quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS now owns 5,700 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $646,000 after buying an additional 2,400 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Kirby by 12.6% during the second quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 87,443 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $9,683,000 after buying an additional 9,802 shares during the last quarter. 96.15% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Kirby Company Profile

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.