Kirby (NYSE:KEX) Price Target Lowered to $123.00 at Bank of America

Kirby (NYSE:KEX) had its price objective lowered by Bank of America from $133.00 to $123.00 in a research report report published on Friday morning,Benzinga reports. Bank of America currently has a buy rating on the shipping company’s stock.

KEX has been the topic of several other reports. StockNews.com lowered shares of Kirby from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, January 9th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price target on Kirby from $136.00 to $135.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 31st. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $124.75.

Kirby Trading Down 2.1 %

Shares of NYSE KEX opened at $100.77 on Friday. Kirby has a 1-year low of $93.63 and a 1-year high of $132.21. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $104.15 and a 200 day moving average price of $113.63. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.88 and a beta of 1.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a current ratio of 1.45 and a quick ratio of 1.05.

Kirby (NYSE:KEX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The shipping company reported $1.29 EPS 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%. Equities research analysts expect that Kirby will post 6.57 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, VP Scott P. Miller sold 1,244 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction 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 completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 5,545 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $596,697.45. This trade represents a 18.32 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.90% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Kirby

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in KEX. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its stake in shares of 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 buying an additional 30,713 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its position in Kirby by 2.6% during the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 415,042 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $43,911,000 after buying an additional 10,486 shares during the period. Artemis Investment Management LLP increased its holdings in Kirby by 112.0% in the fourth quarter. Artemis Investment Management LLP now owns 382,835 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $40,504,000 after buying an additional 202,272 shares in the last quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Kirby by 24.3% during the 4th quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 29,659 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $3,143,000 after acquiring an additional 5,804 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Kirby during the 4th quarter valued at about $18,749,000. 96.15% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Kirby

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.