BTIG Research Issues Positive Forecast for Kirby (NYSE:KEX) Stock Price

Kirby (NYSE:KEX) had its price target lifted by BTIG Research from $135.00 to $160.00 in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday, Marketbeat.com reports. The firm currently has a buy rating on the shipping company’s stock.

Several other research analysts have also weighed in on the stock. Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Kirby from $147.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Kirby from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, March 13th. Wolfe Research reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $136.00 price target on shares of Kirby in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Evercore reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $138.00 price target on shares of Kirby in a research report on Monday, March 9th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Kirby from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Friday, March 27th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $140.20.

Kirby Trading Down 0.2%

Shares of KEX opened at $142.33 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.53, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $130.78 and its two-hundred day moving average is $115.55. Kirby has a twelve month low of $79.51 and a twelve month high of $144.01. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.48, a PEG ratio of 1.36 and a beta of 0.83.

Kirby (NYSE:KEX) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The shipping company reported $1.68 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.62 by $0.06. Kirby had a net margin of 10.54% and a return on equity of 10.53%. The company had revenue of $851.78 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $857.82 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.29 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts predict that Kirby will post 6.57 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO David W. Grzebinski sold 34,152 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $130.05, for a total value of $4,441,467.60. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 98,241 shares in the company, valued at $12,776,242.05. This represents a 25.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, VP Scott P. Miller sold 3,960 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $120.68, for a total transaction of $477,892.80. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 3,565 shares in the company, valued at $430,224.20. This represents a 52.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 71,495 shares of company stock valued at $9,226,173. Corporate insiders own 0.80% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Kirby

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of KEX. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its position in Kirby by 30.4% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 491,355 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $49,632,000 after acquiring an additional 114,618 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC boosted its position in Kirby by 152.7% during the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 182,565 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $18,441,000 after acquiring an additional 110,320 shares during the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC boosted its position in Kirby by 68.6% during the second quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 20,096 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $2,279,000 after acquiring an additional 8,174 shares during the last quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System boosted its position in Kirby by 3.5% during the second quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 96,565 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $10,951,000 after acquiring an additional 3,292 shares during the last quarter. Finally, NewEdge Advisors LLC boosted its position in Kirby by 52,000.0% during the second quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 2,084 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $236,000 after acquiring an additional 2,080 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.15% of the company’s stock.

About Kirby

Kirby Corporation is a leading domestic maritime transporter of bulk liquid products in the United States. Through its Marine Transportation segment, the company operates one of North America’s largest fleets of inland tank barges and towing vessels. Kirby’s fleet moves petrochemicals, black oil, refined petroleum products and agricultural chemicals along coastal and inland waterways, providing critical logistical support to energy, chemical and agricultural producers.

In addition to its marine operations, Kirby’s Distribution and Services segment offers diesel engine and power generation services, along with aftermarket parts sales.