702,201 Shares in Kirby Co. (NYSE:KEX) Bought by Norges Bank

Norges Bank bought a new stake in Kirby Co. (NYSE:KEX) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 702,201 shares of the shipping company’s stock, valued at approximately $74,293,000. Norges Bank owned about 1.22% of Kirby at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in KEX. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC raised its stake in shares of Kirby by 1.3% during the 4th quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 8,459 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $895,000 after acquiring an additional 108 shares in the last quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC increased its position in shares of Kirby by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 30,914 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $3,271,000 after purchasing an additional 140 shares in the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC boosted 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 purchasing an additional 202 shares in the last quarter. Virtus Fund Advisers LLC grew its stake in 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 buying an additional 233 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC acquired a new position in Kirby during the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. 96.15% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. StockNews.com lowered Kirby from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 9th. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price target on shares of Kirby from $136.00 to $135.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Bank of America lowered their price objective on shares of Kirby from $133.00 to $123.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, March 28th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Kirby currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $124.75.

Insider Buying and Selling at Kirby

In related news, VP Scott P. Miller sold 1,244 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $107.61, for a total transaction of $133,866.84. Following the sale, the vice president now directly 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 transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.90% of the company’s stock.

Kirby Price Performance

Shares of NYSE KEX opened at $103.01 on Thursday. Kirby Co. has a 52 week low of $93.85 and a 52 week high of $132.21. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $103.56 and its 200 day moving average price is $113.32. The company has a quick ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 1.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. The firm has a market cap of $5.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.98, a P/E/G ratio of 0.88 and a beta of 1.18.

Kirby (NYSE:KEX) last released its quarterly earnings data 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%. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Kirby Co. will post 6.57 earnings per share for the current year.

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.