Oliver Lagore Vanvalin Investment Group Takes Position in Kirby Co. (NYSE:KEX)

Oliver Lagore Vanvalin Investment Group bought a new position in shares of Kirby Co. (NYSE:KEX) in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 711 shares of the shipping company’s stock, valued at approximately $85,000.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Schroder Investment Management Group boosted its holdings in shares of Kirby by 12.2% in the fourth quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 630,360 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $49,471,000 after buying an additional 68,420 shares during the period. Scout Investments Inc. boosted its stake in Kirby by 66.5% in the 1st quarter. Scout Investments Inc. now owns 108,814 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $10,299,000 after purchasing an additional 43,465 shares during the period. Quadrature Capital Ltd increased its holdings in Kirby by 166.6% during the 4th quarter. Quadrature Capital Ltd now owns 10,934 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $859,000 after purchasing an additional 6,832 shares in the last quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. raised its stake in shares of Kirby by 21.4% in the 1st quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. now owns 896,257 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $85,432,000 after purchasing an additional 157,880 shares during the period. Finally, Sei Investments Co. lifted its holdings in shares of Kirby by 32.4% in the first quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 66,833 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $6,371,000 after purchasing an additional 16,373 shares in the last quarter. 96.15% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Kirby Trading Up 2.0 %

Kirby stock opened at $125.33 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $7.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.63, a P/E/G ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 1.17. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $118.48 and a 200-day moving average of $113.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 1.70 and a quick ratio of 1.05. Kirby Co. has a one year low of $72.11 and a one year high of $130.90.

Kirby (NYSE:KEX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The shipping company reported $1.43 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.32 by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $824.40 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations 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% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.95 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that Kirby Co. will post 5.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, COO Christian G. O’neil sold 2,770 shares of Kirby stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $110.21, for a total transaction of $305,281.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 16,079 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,772,066.59. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Kirby news, CEO David W. Grzebinski sold 26,358 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $120.46, for a total value of $3,175,084.68. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 63,399 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,637,043.54. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, COO Christian G. O’neil sold 2,770 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $110.21, for a total transaction of $305,281.70. Following the completion of the transaction, 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. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 46,012 shares of company stock valued at $5,571,267. 1.50% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the company. StockNews.com downgraded Kirby from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, September 22nd. Bank of America upped their price target on Kirby from $138.00 to $141.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $123.80.

About Kirby

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.