Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Kirby Co. (NYSE:KEX - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 702,201 shares of the shipping company's stock, valued at approximately $74,293,000. Norges Bank owned 1.22% of Kirby at the end of the most recent reporting period.
A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in KEX. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its position in Kirby by 13.5% in the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 161,495 shares of the shipping company's stock worth $17,086,000 after purchasing an additional 19,230 shares in the last quarter. EFG Asset Management North America Corp. raised its holdings in shares of Kirby by 58.3% in the 4th quarter. EFG Asset Management North America Corp. now owns 25,503 shares of the shipping company's stock worth $2,700,000 after buying an additional 9,394 shares in the last quarter. Advantage Alpha Capital Partners LP lifted its position in shares of Kirby by 47.5% during the 4th quarter. Advantage Alpha Capital Partners LP now owns 71,811 shares of the shipping company's stock worth $7,598,000 after buying an additional 23,118 shares during the period. LPL Financial LLC boosted its stake in Kirby by 43.8% in the 4th quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 7,054 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $746,000 after buying an additional 2,149 shares in the last quarter. Finally, KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS bought a new stake in Kirby in the fourth quarter valued at $349,000. 96.15% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.
Kirby Price Performance
Shares of KEX stock traded down $0.69 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $88.48. 868,741 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 537,850. The stock's 50-day moving average is $102.47 and its 200-day moving average is $112.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a current ratio of 1.45 and a quick ratio of 1.05. Kirby Co. has a 52 week low of $83.94 and a 52 week high of $132.21. The stock has a market cap of $5.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.88 and a beta of 0.99.
Kirby (NYSE:KEX - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The shipping company reported $1.29 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.30 by ($0.01). Kirby had a return on equity of 9.71% and a net margin of 8.78%. As a group, research analysts forecast that Kirby Co. will post 6.57 EPS for the current year.
Analysts Set New Price Targets
A number of brokerages have issued reports on KEX. StockNews.com cut Kirby from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report 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 for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Bank of America decreased their price objective on shares of Kirby from $133.00 to $123.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, March 28th.
Read Our Latest Analysis on KEX
Insider Activity
In other Kirby news, VP Scott P. Miller sold 1,244 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $107.61, for a total value of $133,866.84. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 5,545 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $596,697.45. This trade represents a 18.32 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.90% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.
About Kirby
(
Free Report)
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.
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