Kirby (NYSE:KEX) Share Price Crosses Below Two Hundred Day Moving Average on Insider Selling

Kirby Corporation (NYSE:KEX) passed below its 200-day moving average during trading on Wednesday after an insider sold shares in the company. The stock has a 200-day moving average of $136.78 and traded as low as $124.51. Kirby shares last traded at $127.8410, with a volume of 1,217,140 shares.

Specifically, CEO David Grzebinski sold 18,310 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $141.32, for a total value of $2,587,569.20. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 79,931 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,295,848.92. This represents a 18.64% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have commented on KEX. Bank of America raised their price objective on Kirby from $169.00 to $182.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 8th. Stephens upped their target price on Kirby from $170.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 29th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Kirby from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 8th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Kirby from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Monday, September 14th. Finally, Citigroup cut their price target on Kirby from $170.00 to $169.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 8th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $171.43.

Kirby Trading Down 9.2%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a quick ratio of 1.12 and a current ratio of 1.68. The firm has a market cap of $6.75 billion, a PE ratio of 18.42, a P/E/G ratio of 1.23 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $137.23 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $136.78.

Kirby (NYSE:KEX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 28th. The shipping company reported $2.09 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.00 by $0.09. Kirby had a net margin of 10.39% and a return on equity of 10.94%. The business had revenue of $977.21 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $938.84 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.65 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 12.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts expect that Kirby Corporation will post 7.26 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Kirby

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Provenance Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Kirby in the 3rd quarter valued at about $27,000. Pension & Wealth Management Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Kirby in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $45,000. Root Financial Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Kirby by 182.9% during the 1st quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 430 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $57,000 after buying an additional 278 shares during the last quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust increased its holdings in shares of Kirby by 488.9% during the 2nd quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 477 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $65,000 after buying an additional 396 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fulcrum Asset Management LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Kirby during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $67,000. 96.15% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Kirby

Kirby Corporation is a Houston-based marine transportation and industrial services company. Through its marine transportation operations, the company is the largest tank barge operator in the United States, transporting bulk liquid products on the nation’s inland and coastal waterways.

Kirby’s marine transportation business carries petrochemicals, refined petroleum products, black oil, agricultural chemicals and other bulk liquids for industrial customers. Its operations primarily serve the U.S.