Cerity Partners LLC Sells 2,675 Shares of Kirby Co. (NYSE:KEX)

Cerity Partners LLC trimmed its position in Kirby Co. (NYSE:KEX) by 32.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 5,477 shares of the shipping company’s stock after selling 2,675 shares during the quarter. Cerity Partners LLC’s holdings in Kirby were worth $639,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB lifted its holdings in Kirby by 112.4% in the third quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 5,208 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $638,000 after buying an additional 2,756 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Kirby during the third quarter valued at approximately $5,136,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its stake 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. First Hawaiian Bank raised its holdings in Kirby by 17.2% in the fourth quarter. First Hawaiian Bank now owns 23,524 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $2,489,000 after purchasing an additional 3,459 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Oak Thistle LLC purchased a new position in Kirby during the fourth quarter valued at $614,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.15% of the company’s stock.

Kirby Stock Up 1.0 %

NYSE:KEX opened at $95.18 on Monday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $99.44 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $110.35. The firm has a market cap of $5.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.38, a P/E/G ratio of 0.88 and a beta of 0.99. Kirby Co. has a fifty-two week low of $83.94 and a fifty-two week high of $132.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a current ratio of 1.45.

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%. Analysts predict that Kirby Co. will post 6.57 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on KEX shares. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on shares of Kirby from $136.00 to $135.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Bank of America lowered their target price on shares of Kirby from $133.00 to $123.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, March 28th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Kirby from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 9th.

Insider Transactions at Kirby

In related news, VP Scott P. Miller sold 1,244 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $107.61, for a total transaction of $133,866.84. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 5,545 shares in the company, valued at $596,697.45. This represents a 18.32 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.90% of the company’s stock.

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.