Kirby (NYSE:KEX) Reaches New 12-Month High Following Analyst Upgrade

Kirby Corporation (NYSE:KEX) shares hit a new 52-week high on Friday after BTIG Research raised their price target on the stock from $125.00 to $140.00. BTIG Research currently has a buy rating on the stock. Kirby traded as high as $127.21 and last traded at $126.4250, with a volume of 12819 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $126.31.

Other equities analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. Evercore ISI boosted their price target on Kirby from $109.00 to $122.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 30th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Kirby from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, November 1st. Wolfe Research reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $134.00 price target on shares of Kirby in a report on Thursday, January 8th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Kirby in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Kirby from $128.00 to $131.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 19th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $128.17.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO David W. Grzebinski sold 29,451 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 in the company, valued at approximately $8,561,543.69. The trade was a 26.98% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Amy D. Husted sold 10,413 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $107.42, for a total transaction of $1,118,564.46. Following the transaction, the vice president directly owned 11,760 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,263,259.20. This trade represents a 46.96% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders sold 57,147 shares of company stock valued at $6,204,544. 0.90% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Kirby

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Luminus Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Kirby by 292.0% during the 3rd quarter. Luminus Management LLC now owns 116,956 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $9,760,000 after acquiring an additional 87,120 shares in the last quarter. Bailard Inc. acquired a new stake in Kirby in the 2nd quarter valued at $692,000. American Century Companies Inc. raised its position in Kirby by 64.9% in the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 50,399 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $5,716,000 after purchasing an additional 19,833 shares during the period. DAVENPORT & Co LLC lifted its stake in shares of Kirby by 29.8% during the third quarter. DAVENPORT & Co LLC now owns 263,943 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $22,026,000 after purchasing an additional 60,635 shares in the last quarter. Finally, KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS lifted its stake in shares of Kirby by 72.7% during the second quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS now owns 5,700 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $646,000 after purchasing an additional 2,400 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.15% of the company’s stock.

Kirby Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 1.70 and a quick ratio of 1.08. The company has a market cap of $6.82 billion, a PE ratio of 23.35, a P/E/G ratio of 1.09 and a beta of 0.88. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $113.28 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $102.99.

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

About Kirby

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.