Creative Planning Raises Stake in Kirby Co. (NYSE:KEX)

Creative Planning raised its stake in shares of Kirby Co. (NYSE:KEX) by 2.2% in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 6,683 shares of the shipping company’s stock after buying an additional 147 shares during the quarter. Creative Planning’s holdings in Kirby were worth $818,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Jennison Associates LLC increased its stake in Kirby by 4.1% in the 1st quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 1,401,844 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $133,624,000 after acquiring an additional 54,755 shares during the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC increased its stake in Kirby by 10.5% in the 1st quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 955,587 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $91,086,000 after acquiring an additional 90,586 shares during the last quarter. Encompass Capital Advisors LLC increased its stake in Kirby by 33.9% in the 2nd quarter. Encompass Capital Advisors LLC now owns 887,384 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $106,246,000 after acquiring an additional 224,802 shares during the last quarter. Hood River Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Kirby by 5.7% in the 2nd quarter. Hood River Capital Management LLC now owns 812,283 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $97,255,000 after acquiring an additional 43,685 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Select Equity Group L.P. bought a new position in Kirby in the 2nd quarter worth about $65,928,000. 96.15% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Kirby Price Performance

NYSE KEX opened at $114.28 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $6.62 billion, a PE ratio of 21.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.71 and a beta of 1.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a current ratio of 1.70. The business’s fifty day moving average is $120.75 and its 200 day moving average is $118.21. Kirby Co. has a fifty-two week low of $72.11 and a fifty-two week high of $130.90.

Kirby (NYSE:KEX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The shipping company reported $1.55 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.47 by $0.08. Kirby had a return on equity of 9.49% and a net margin of 9.37%. The business had revenue of $831.10 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $824.42 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.05 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 8.7% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Kirby Co. will post 5.46 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Kirby

In other Kirby news, VP Amy D. Husted sold 2,853 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $126.54, for a total transaction of $361,018.62. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 5,280 shares in the company, valued at $668,131.20. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, VP Amy D. Husted sold 2,853 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $126.54, for a total value of $361,018.62. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 5,280 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $668,131.20. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, COO Christian G. O’neil sold 2,770 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 5th. The stock was 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 directly owns 16,079 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,772,066.59. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 46,012 shares of company stock worth $5,571,267. 1.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

KEX has been the topic of several recent research reports. Bank of America increased their price objective on Kirby from $138.00 to $141.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd. StockNews.com lowered Kirby from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, September 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $123.80.

Kirby 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.