Kirby (NYSE:KEX) Research Coverage Started at JPMorgan Chase & Co.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. started coverage on shares of Kirby (NYSE:KEX) in a research report report published on Wednesday morning, MarketBeat.com reports. The brokerage issued an overweight rating and a $200.00 price objective on the shipping company’s stock.

Other analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. Weiss Ratings upgraded Kirby from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Monday, September 14th. Citigroup cut their target price on Kirby from $170.00 to $169.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 8th. Bank of America lifted their price target on Kirby from $169.00 to $182.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 8th. BTIG Research reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $170.00 price target on shares of Kirby in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut shares of Kirby from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 8th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $169.17.

Kirby Trading Down 0.7%

Shares of Kirby stock opened at $136.18 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $7.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.10, a P/E/G ratio of 1.23 and a beta of 0.84. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $137.25 and its 200-day simple moving average is $139.95. Kirby has a 1-year low of $84.05 and a 1-year high of $157.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 1.68 and a quick ratio of 1.12.

Kirby (NYSE:KEX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The shipping company reported $1.67 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.63 by $0.04. Kirby had a return on equity of 10.44% and a net margin of 10.18%. The business had revenue of $922.40 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $870.38 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.67 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 7.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Kirby has set its FY 2026 guidance at 7.280-7.280 EPS. Analysts predict that Kirby will post 7.10 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Kirby

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new position in Kirby in the second quarter worth approximately $733,274,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its position in Kirby by 5.4% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,617,538 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $347,829,000 after purchasing an additional 133,030 shares during the period. Congress Asset Management Co. raised its position in Kirby by 8.2% in the third quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. now owns 761,099 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $99,894,000 after purchasing an additional 57,371 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC raised its position in Kirby by 3.3% in the first quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 758,029 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $100,727,000 after purchasing an additional 24,147 shares during the period. Finally, Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC acquired a new position in shares of Kirby in the 2nd quarter valued at $69,359,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.15% of the company’s stock.

About Kirby

Kirby Corporation is a marine transportation and engine-services company headquartered in Houston, Texas. Founded in 1921, the company operates primarily in the United States and is one of the largest domestic operators of tank barges.

Through its marine transportation business, Kirby transports bulk liquid products on the nation’s inland waterway system and along the U.S. coast. Its cargoes include refined petroleum products, petrochemicals, black oil, agricultural chemicals and other specialty liquids.