Kirby Co. (NYSE:KEX) Shares Sold by Principal Street Partners LLC

Principal Street Partners LLC lowered its position in Kirby Co. (NYSE:KEX - Free Report) by 74.3% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,773 shares of the shipping company's stock after selling 5,115 shares during the quarter. Principal Street Partners LLC's holdings in Kirby were worth $217,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Farther Finance Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Kirby by 420.0% during the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 208 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 168 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Kirby in the second quarter worth about $26,000. ORG Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in Kirby in the 3rd quarter worth about $30,000. ORG Partners LLC bought a new stake in Kirby during the 2nd quarter valued at about $32,000. Finally, Opal Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Kirby in the 2nd quarter valued at about $33,000. Institutional investors own 96.15% of the company's stock.

Kirby Stock Down 2.6 %

NYSE KEX traded down $3.43 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $126.36. 422,525 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 455,888. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $124.13 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $120.71. Kirby Co. has a 12-month low of $72.11 and a 12-month high of $132.21. The firm has a market cap of $7.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 1.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 1.67 and a quick ratio of 1.05.

Kirby (NYSE:KEX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 company had revenue of $831.10 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $824.42 million. Kirby had a net margin of 9.37% and a return on equity of 9.43%. Kirby's revenue was up 8.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.05 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Kirby Co. will post 5.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Ronald A. Dragg sold 2,313 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $127.30, for a total transaction of $294,444.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 7,683 shares in the company, valued at $978,045.90. The trade was a 23.14 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO David W. Grzebinski sold 26,358 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 63,399 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,637,043.54. This trade represents a 29.37 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 68,596 shares of company stock worth $8,541,440 in the last three months. 1.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, StockNews.com lowered shares of Kirby from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Sunday, September 22nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus 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.