Kirby (NYSE:KEX) VP Sells $581,720.00 in Stock

Kirby Corporation (NYSE:KEX) VP Amy Husted sold 4,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $145.43, for a total transaction of $581,720.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president owned 10,814 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,572,680.02. This represents a 27.00% 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 link.

Kirby Price Performance

Shares of KEX opened at $148.73 on Thursday. The company’s 50-day moving average is $139.73 and its 200-day moving average is $125.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 1.59 and a quick ratio of 1.01. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.96 billion, a PE ratio of 22.88, a PEG ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 0.85. Kirby Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $79.51 and a fifty-two week high of $157.69.

Kirby (NYSE:KEX) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The shipping company reported $1.50 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.41 by $0.09. Kirby had a net margin of 10.51% and a return on equity of 10.62%. The business had revenue of $844.10 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $832.57 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.33 EPS. Kirby’s revenue was up 7.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Kirby has set its FY 2026 guidance at 6.650-7.280 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Kirby Corporation will post 6.99 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Kirby

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Kirby by 92.0% during the 4th quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 2,612,119 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $287,803,000 after acquiring an additional 1,251,700 shares in the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP increased its holdings in Kirby by 109.4% in the 4th quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 2,256,667 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $248,640,000 after purchasing an additional 1,178,963 shares in the last quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. raised its position in Kirby by 72.5% in the second quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 2,282,865 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $258,900,000 after purchasing an additional 959,209 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in Kirby in the fourth quarter valued at about $81,355,000. Finally, Congress Asset Management Co. acquired a new stake in shares of Kirby during the fourth quarter valued at about $58,385,000. 96.15% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on KEX shares. Citigroup increased their target price on Kirby from $147.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. Evercore restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $158.00 price target on shares of Kirby in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Zacks Research raised Kirby from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, March 13th. BTIG Research increased their price objective on Kirby from $160.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Weiss Ratings cut shares of Kirby from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Friday, May 15th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $146.20.

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.