StockNews.com Lowers Kirby (NYSE:KEX) to Hold

Kirby (NYSE:KEX) was downgraded by equities researchers at StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note issued to investors on Sunday.

Separately, Bank of America boosted their target price on Kirby from $138.00 to $141.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $123.80.

Kirby Stock Down 2.0 %

KEX stock opened at $124.50 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $7.29 billion, a PE ratio of 29.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.71 and a beta of 1.17. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $118.51 and a 200 day simple moving average of $112.18. Kirby has a 52 week low of $72.11 and a 52 week high of $130.90. The company has a quick ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 1.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32.

Kirby (NYSE:KEX) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The shipping company reported $1.43 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.32 by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $824.40 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $821.65 million. Kirby had a return on equity of 8.70% and a net margin of 8.72%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 6.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.95 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Kirby will post 5.46 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Kirby

In other news, CEO David W. Grzebinski sold 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $120.31, for a total transaction of $360,930.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 63,399 shares in the company, valued at $7,627,533.69. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, CEO David W. Grzebinski sold 3,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $120.31, for a total value of $360,930.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 63,399 shares in the company, valued at $7,627,533.69. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, COO Christian G. O’neil sold 2,770 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $110.21, for a total value of $305,281.70. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 16,079 shares in the company, valued at $1,772,066.59. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 49,012 shares of company stock worth $5,932,197. Insiders own 1.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Kirby

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. International Assets Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Kirby during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $26,000. ORG Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Kirby during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $32,000. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Kirby during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $33,000. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Kirby by 91.0% during the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 296 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 141 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mark Sheptoff Financial Planning LLC bought a new position in shares of Kirby during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $37,000. 96.15% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Kirby Company Profile

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.