Bridgewater Associates LP Acquires New Position in Kirby Co. (NYSE:KEX)

Bridgewater Associates LP bought a new stake in shares of Kirby Co. (NYSE:KEX - Free Report) in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 55,405 shares of the shipping company's stock, valued at approximately $6,783,000. Bridgewater Associates LP owned about 0.10% of Kirby at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Kirby by 420.0% during the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 208 shares of the shipping company's stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 168 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Kirby during the second quarter worth $26,000. ORG Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in Kirby in the 3rd quarter valued at $30,000. ORG Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Kirby in the 2nd quarter valued at $32,000. Finally, Opal Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Kirby during the 2nd quarter worth about $33,000. 96.15% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Kirby Price Performance

Shares of NYSE KEX traded up $0.15 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $126.51. 273,235 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 455,097. Kirby Co. has a 12 month low of $72.11 and a 12 month high of $132.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a current ratio of 1.67. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $124.16 and its 200-day simple moving average is $120.88. The firm has a market cap of $7.26 billion, a PE ratio of 24.28, a PEG ratio of 0.75 and a beta of 1.17.

Kirby (NYSE:KEX - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The shipping company reported $1.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.47 by $0.08. The firm 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 quarterly revenue was up 8.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.05 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Kirby Co. will post 5.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Kirby

In other Kirby news, CEO David W. Grzebinski sold 26,358 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $120.46, for a total transaction of $3,175,084.68. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 63,399 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,637,043.54. This represents a 29.37 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, COO Christian G. O'neil sold 14,031 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $123.29, for a total transaction of $1,729,881.99. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 12,746 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,571,454.34. This represents a 52.40 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 68,596 shares of company stock valued at $8,541,440 in the last three months. 1.50% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, StockNews.com cut shares of Kirby from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Sunday, September 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $123.80.

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.