Analysts Set Kirby Co. (NYSE:KEX) Price Target at $123.80

Kirby Co. (NYSE:KEX) has been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Buy” from the five brokerages that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating. The average 12 month price target among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $123.80.

Separately, StockNews.com downgraded Kirby from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 9th.

Insider Buying and Selling at Kirby

In other news, VP Ronald A. Dragg sold 2,313 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $127.30, for a total value of $294,444.90. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 7,683 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $978,045.90. The trade was a 23.14 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Richard Ross Stewart sold 8,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $128.21, for a total value of $1,025,680.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 15,488 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,985,716.48. This represents a 34.06 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 25,354 shares of company stock worth $3,275,455. Insiders own 1.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of KEX. Renaissance Technologies LLC bought a new stake in Kirby in the second quarter valued at $1,233,000. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board bought a new stake in Kirby in the 2nd quarter valued at about $72,000. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Kirby by 115.5% during the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 189,924 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $22,740,000 after buying an additional 101,791 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC boosted its holdings in Kirby by 13.1% in the second quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 533,326 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $63,855,000 after acquiring an additional 61,573 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Creative Planning grew its stake in Kirby by 16.8% in the second quarter. Creative Planning now owns 6,536 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $783,000 after acquiring an additional 940 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.15% of the company’s stock.

Kirby Stock Performance

Kirby stock opened at $111.65 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 1.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The stock has a market cap of $6.41 billion, a PE ratio of 21.43, a P/E/G ratio of 0.55 and a beta of 1.21. Kirby has a 12-month low of $78.63 and a 12-month high of $132.21. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $112.70 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $117.98.

Kirby (NYSE:KEX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The shipping company reported $1.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.30 by ($0.01). Kirby had a net margin of 9.37% and a return on equity of 9.43%. As a group, analysts expect that Kirby will post 5.45 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.