Blueshift Asset Management LLC Buys Shares of 3,815 Kirby Corporation (NYSE:KEX)

Blueshift Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Kirby Corporation (NYSE:KEX) during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 3,815 shares of the shipping company’s stock, valued at approximately $385,000.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Huntington National Bank raised its stake in Kirby by 6.8% during the fourth quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 1,781 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $188,000 after acquiring an additional 113 shares during the period. Brown Advisory Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Kirby by 0.3% during the first quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. now owns 36,597 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $3,697,000 after purchasing an additional 117 shares during the last quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV raised its position in shares of Kirby by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 13,035 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $1,379,000 after purchasing an additional 124 shares during the period. Stifel Financial Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Kirby by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 29,047 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $3,073,000 after purchasing an additional 138 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. boosted its position in Kirby by 28.7% during the 1st quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 668 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $67,000 after purchasing an additional 149 shares during the period. 96.15% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Bank of America increased their target price on Kirby from $116.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 16th.

Kirby Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:KEX opened at $95.50 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $113.62 and its two-hundred day moving average is $106.23. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.05, a PEG ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a current ratio of 1.58, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. Kirby Corporation has a 52 week low of $83.94 and a 52 week high of $132.21.

Kirby (NYSE:KEX) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The shipping company reported $1.67 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.59 by $0.08. Kirby had a return on equity of 10.07% and a net margin of 9.25%. The firm had revenue of $855.46 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $851.94 million. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.43 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 3.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that Kirby Corporation will post 6.57 earnings per share for the current year.

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.