Raymond James Financial Inc. Acquires New Holdings in Kirby Co. (NYSE:KEX)

Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Kirby Co. (NYSE:KEX) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 177,215 shares of the shipping company’s stock, valued at approximately $18,749,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. owned approximately 0.31% of Kirby at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in KEX. Artemis Investment Management LLP boosted its holdings in Kirby by 112.0% in 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 in the last quarter. DAVENPORT & Co LLC acquired a new stake in Kirby in the fourth quarter worth about $16,390,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Kirby by 27.8% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 699,052 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $85,585,000 after acquiring an additional 152,146 shares in the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC boosted its holdings in Kirby by 92.5% in the fourth quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 221,460 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $23,247,000 after acquiring an additional 106,411 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Empire Life Investments Inc. acquired a new stake in Kirby in the fourth quarter worth about $10,442,000. Institutional investors own 96.15% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have weighed in on KEX. StockNews.com downgraded Kirby from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, January 9th. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price objective on Kirby from $136.00 to $135.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $129.25.

Insider Activity at Kirby

In related news, VP Scott P. Miller sold 1,244 shares of Kirby stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $107.61, for a total transaction of $133,866.84. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 5,545 shares in the company, valued at approximately $596,697.45. This trade represents a 18.32 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 1.50% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Kirby Trading Up 1.2 %

Shares of NYSE:KEX opened at $100.22 on Tuesday. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $105.02 and a 200-day moving average price of $114.53. The company has a quick ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 1.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. The stock has a market cap of $5.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.41, a PEG ratio of 0.88 and a beta of 1.18. Kirby Co. has a 52-week low of $88.34 and a 52-week high of $132.21.

Kirby (NYSE:KEX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The shipping company reported $1.29 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.30 by ($0.01). Kirby had a net margin of 8.78% and a return on equity of 9.71%. Equities analysts predict that Kirby Co. will post 6.57 EPS for the current 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.