Asset Management One Co. Ltd. Buys 5,804 Shares of Kirby Co. (NYSE:KEX)

Asset Management One Co. Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Kirby Co. (NYSE:KEX) by 24.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 29,659 shares of the shipping company’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,804 shares during the quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. owned about 0.05% of Kirby worth $3,143,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its holdings in Kirby by 27.5% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 142,265 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $17,418,000 after purchasing an additional 30,713 shares during the period. Creative Planning raised its holdings in shares of Kirby by 2.2% during the third quarter. Creative Planning now owns 6,683 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $818,000 after acquiring an additional 147 shares during the period. Atria Investments Inc raised its holdings in shares of Kirby by 27.5% during the third quarter. Atria Investments Inc now owns 35,353 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $4,328,000 after acquiring an additional 7,629 shares during the period. Advantage Alpha Capital Partners LP raised its holdings in shares of Kirby by 51.2% during the third quarter. Advantage Alpha Capital Partners LP now owns 48,693 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $5,961,000 after acquiring an additional 16,497 shares during the period. Finally, Artemis Investment Management LLP raised its holdings in shares of Kirby by 112.0% during the fourth quarter. Artemis Investment Management LLP now owns 382,835 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $40,504,000 after acquiring an additional 202,272 shares during the period. 96.15% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Kirby

In related news, VP Scott P. Miller sold 1,244 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $107.61, for a total value of $133,866.84. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 5,545 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $596,697.45. This trade represents a 18.32 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 1.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on KEX shares. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price objective on shares of Kirby from $136.00 to $135.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. StockNews.com lowered shares of Kirby from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, January 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $129.25.

Kirby Stock Down 1.7 %

Kirby stock opened at $108.10 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $6.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 1.19. Kirby Co. has a 1-year low of $84.56 and a 1-year high of $132.21. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $107.93 and a 200 day simple moving average of $116.60. The company has a current ratio of 1.67, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29.

Kirby (NYSE:KEX) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The shipping company reported $1.29 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.30 by ($0.01). Kirby had a net margin of 8.78% and a return on equity of 9.78%. Research analysts anticipate that Kirby Co. will post 6.57 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.