Bank of Montreal Can Trims Position in Kirby Co. (NYSE:KEX)

Bank of Montreal Can trimmed its position in shares of Kirby Co. (NYSE:KEX - Free Report) by 87.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 14,272 shares of the shipping company's stock after selling 97,455 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can's holdings in Kirby were worth $1,510,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Empowered Funds LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Kirby during the fourth quarter worth $25,000. R Squared Ltd purchased a new stake in Kirby during the 4th quarter worth about $76,000. Signaturefd LLC raised its position in Kirby by 13.1% in the 4th quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 1,746 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $185,000 after purchasing an additional 202 shares in the last quarter. Huntington National Bank boosted its stake in shares of Kirby by 6.8% in the 4th quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 1,781 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $188,000 after buying an additional 113 shares during the period. Finally, Ieq Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Kirby during the fourth quarter worth about $257,000. 96.15% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently weighed in on the stock. StockNews.com cut shares of Kirby from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, January 9th. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price objective on shares of Kirby from $136.00 to $135.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Bank of America lowered their target price on shares of Kirby from $133.00 to $123.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, March 28th.

Insider Activity

In other Kirby news, VP Scott P. Miller sold 1,244 shares of Kirby stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $107.61, for a total transaction of $133,866.84. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 5,545 shares of the company's stock, valued at $596,697.45. The trade was a 18.32 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.90% of the company's stock.

Kirby Stock Up 2.5 %

KEX stock traded up $2.36 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $97.13. 64,250 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 629,449. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.78, a PEG ratio of 0.88 and a beta of 0.99. The company has a current ratio of 1.45, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. Kirby Co. has a 52-week low of $83.94 and a 52-week high of $132.21. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $98.92 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $110.04.

Kirby (NYSE:KEX - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The shipping company reported $1.29 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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, equities research analysts expect that Kirby Co. will post 6.57 EPS for the current year.

About Kirby

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.