Assenagon Asset Management S.A. Boosts Stock Position in Kirby Co. (NYSE:KEX)

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its holdings in shares of Kirby Co. (NYSE:KEX - Free Report) by 32.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 184,061 shares of the shipping company's stock after purchasing an additional 44,959 shares during the quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. owned about 0.32% of Kirby worth $19,474,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Quest Partners LLC boosted its stake in Kirby by 0.7% in the 3rd quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 12,462 shares of the shipping company's stock worth $1,526,000 after purchasing an additional 89 shares during the period. Americana Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Kirby by 2.1% in the third quarter. Americana Partners LLC now owns 4,900 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $600,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the period. Huntington National Bank boosted its position in shares of Kirby by 8.5% in the third quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 1,668 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $204,000 after acquiring an additional 130 shares during the period. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC grew its stake in Kirby by 3.1% during the second quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC now owns 4,372 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $523,000 after acquiring an additional 133 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Creative Planning increased its holdings in Kirby by 2.2% during the 3rd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 6,683 shares of the shipping company's stock worth $818,000 after acquiring an additional 147 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.15% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Kirby from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, January 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $123.80.

Insider Transactions at Kirby

In other news, Director Richard Ross Stewart sold 8,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $128.21, for a total value of $1,025,680.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 15,488 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,985,716.48. The trade was a 34.06 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, VP Ronald A. Dragg sold 2,313 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $127.30, for a total value of $294,444.90. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 7,683 shares in the company, valued at approximately $978,045.90. The trade was a 23.14 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 25,354 shares of company stock worth $3,275,455. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Kirby Price Performance

Kirby stock traded up $0.42 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $111.91. 804,371 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 620,549. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a current ratio of 1.67. Kirby Co. has a one year low of $76.12 and a one year high of $132.21. The stock has a market cap of $6.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.52 and a beta of 1.21. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $115.90 and a 200-day moving average price of $118.64.

Kirby (NYSE:KEX - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The shipping company reported $1.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.47 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $831.10 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $824.42 million. Kirby had a net margin of 9.37% and a return on equity of 9.43%. The firm's revenue was up 8.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.05 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Kirby Co. will post 5.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kirby Company Profile

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.