Vanguard Group Inc. Sells 3,826 Shares of Kirby Co. (NYSE:KEX)

Vanguard Group Inc. lowered its stake in shares of Kirby Co. (NYSE:KEX) by 0.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 6,066,529 shares of the shipping company’s stock after selling 3,826 shares during the quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. owned about 0.11% of Kirby worth $641,839,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC raised its position in shares of Kirby by 1.3% during the fourth quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 8,459 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $895,000 after buying an additional 108 shares during the last quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC raised its holdings in Kirby by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 30,914 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $3,271,000 after acquiring an additional 140 shares in the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC lifted its position in shares of Kirby by 13.1% in the 4th quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 1,746 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $185,000 after acquiring an additional 202 shares during the period. Virtus Fund Advisers LLC grew its holdings in shares of Kirby by 38.8% during the 3rd quarter. Virtus Fund Advisers LLC now owns 833 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $102,000 after purchasing an additional 233 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC bought a new stake in shares of Kirby during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. 96.15% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Kirby

In other Kirby news, VP Scott P. Miller sold 1,244 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $107.61, for a total value of $133,866.84. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 5,545 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $596,697.45. The trade was a 18.32 % 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 this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.90% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

KEX has been the subject of several research reports. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their target price on 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 on the stock in a research note on Friday. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Kirby from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Kirby presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $124.75.

Kirby Stock Down 2.1 %

KEX opened at $100.77 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $5.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.52, a PEG ratio of 0.88 and a beta of 1.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a current ratio of 1.45. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $104.15 and its 200-day simple moving average is $113.62. Kirby Co. has a twelve month low of $93.63 and a twelve month high of $132.21.

Kirby (NYSE:KEX) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 return on equity of 9.71% and a net margin of 8.78%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Kirby Co. will post 6.57 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Kirby Company 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.