Lathrop Investment Management Co. Sells 8,217 Shares of Kirby Corporation $KEX

Lathrop Investment Management Co. lowered its stake in shares of Kirby Corporation (NYSE:KEX) by 6.0% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 129,669 shares of the shipping company’s stock after selling 8,217 shares during the period. Kirby makes up approximately 2.0% of Lathrop Investment Management Co.’s holdings, making the stock its 26th biggest holding. Lathrop Investment Management Co.’s holdings in Kirby were worth $10,821,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Alliancebernstein L.P. lifted its position in shares of Kirby by 72.5% during the second quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 2,282,865 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $258,900,000 after purchasing an additional 959,209 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in Kirby in the 2nd quarter valued at $78,256,000. Hood River Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Kirby in the 2nd quarter valued at $73,784,000. Encompass Capital Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Kirby by 32.4% during the second quarter. Encompass Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,225,338 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $138,966,000 after acquiring an additional 299,981 shares during the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Kirby by 438.7% during the third quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 271,499 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $22,657,000 after acquiring an additional 221,100 shares during the period. 96.15% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have weighed in on KEX shares. Citigroup boosted their price objective on Kirby from $145.00 to $147.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 30th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Kirby from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. Wolfe Research restated an “outperform” rating and set a $136.00 target price on shares of Kirby in a report on Friday, January 30th. BTIG Research reduced their price objective on Kirby from $140.00 to $135.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Finally, Zacks Research lowered Kirby from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Kirby presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $129.40.

Insider Activity at Kirby

In other Kirby news, VP William Matthew Woodruff sold 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $121.88, for a total transaction of $243,760.00. Following the sale, the vice president directly owned 687 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $83,731.56. The trade was a 74.43% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, VP Amy D. Husted sold 11,667 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $129.33, for a total transaction of $1,508,893.11. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president owned 14,814 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,915,894.62. This trade represents a 44.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 68,353 shares of company stock worth $8,579,025 over the last 90 days. 0.90% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Kirby Price Performance

Shares of Kirby stock opened at $129.78 on Monday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $122.28 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $105.91. Kirby Corporation has a twelve month low of $79.51 and a twelve month high of $132.41. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.16 and a beta of 0.83. The company has a quick ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 1.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27.

Kirby (NYSE:KEX) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The shipping company reported $1.68 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.62 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $851.78 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $857.82 million. Kirby had a net margin of 10.54% and a return on equity of 10.53%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.29 earnings per share. Analysts forecast that Kirby Corporation will post 6.57 EPS for the current 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.