Squarepoint Ops LLC Has $1.30 Million Stock Holdings in Kirby Corporation $KEX

Squarepoint Ops LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Kirby Corporation (NYSE:KEX) by 85.4% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 11,493 shares of the shipping company’s stock after selling 67,116 shares during the period. Squarepoint Ops LLC’s holdings in Kirby were worth $1,303,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in KEX. Alliancebernstein L.P. boosted its holdings in shares of Kirby by 72.5% during the 2nd quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 2,282,865 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $258,900,000 after buying an additional 959,209 shares in the last quarter. Select Equity Group L.P. boosted its stake in Kirby by 10.8% during the second quarter. Select Equity Group L.P. now owns 2,165,929 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $245,638,000 after acquiring an additional 211,231 shares in the last quarter. Encompass Capital Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Kirby by 32.4% during the second quarter. Encompass Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,225,338 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $138,966,000 after acquiring an additional 299,981 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE grew its holdings in Kirby by 0.8% in the second quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 802,865 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $91,053,000 after purchasing an additional 6,474 shares during the period. Finally, Park West Asset Management LLC increased its stake in Kirby by 69.3% in the first quarter. Park West Asset Management LLC now owns 776,000 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $78,384,000 after purchasing an additional 317,721 shares in the last quarter. 96.15% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently commented on KEX shares. Citigroup raised their target price on Kirby from $128.00 to $131.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday. Zacks Research raised Kirby from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 3rd. Evercore ISI upped their target price on Kirby from $109.00 to $122.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 30th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Kirby in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Kirby from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, November 1st. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $124.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at Kirby

In other Kirby news, CEO David W. Grzebinski sold 29,451 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $107.41, for a total value of $3,163,331.91. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 79,709 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,561,543.69. This represents a 26.98% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP Kurt A. Niemietz sold 1,500 shares of Kirby stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $114.12, for a total transaction of $171,180.00. Following the transaction, the vice president directly owned 958 shares in the company, valued at approximately $109,326.96. This represents a 61.03% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 46,002 shares of company stock valued at $4,959,871 in the last quarter. 0.90% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Kirby Stock Down 0.7%

Shares of NYSE:KEX opened at $110.88 on Friday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $103.64 and its 200 day moving average is $102.29. Kirby Corporation has a 12-month low of $79.51 and a 12-month high of $122.50. The stock has a market cap of $6.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.57, a PEG ratio of 1.08 and a beta of 0.88. The company has a quick ratio of 1.08, a current ratio of 1.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31.

Kirby (NYSE:KEX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 29th. The shipping company reported $1.65 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.60 by $0.05. Kirby had a return on equity of 10.05% and a net margin of 9.22%.The business had revenue of $871.16 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $843.29 million. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.55 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Kirby Corporation will post 6.57 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kirby Profile

Kirby Corporation is a leading domestic maritime transporter of bulk liquid products in the United States. Through its Marine Transportation segment, the company operates one of North America’s largest fleets of inland tank barges and towing vessels. Kirby’s fleet moves petrochemicals, black oil, refined petroleum products and agricultural chemicals along coastal and inland waterways, providing critical logistical support to energy, chemical and agricultural producers.

In addition to its marine operations, Kirby’s Distribution and Services segment offers diesel engine and power generation services, along with aftermarket parts sales.