Kirby Co. (NYSE:KEX) Shares Acquired by Peregrine Capital Management LLC

Peregrine Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Kirby Co. (NYSE:KEX - Free Report) by 13.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 82,578 shares of the shipping company's stock after purchasing an additional 9,562 shares during the quarter. Peregrine Capital Management LLC owned approximately 0.14% of Kirby worth $8,737,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of KEX. Hourglass Capital LLC increased its stake in Kirby by 9.5% in the fourth quarter. Hourglass Capital LLC now owns 44,825 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $4,742,000 after purchasing an additional 3,890 shares during the last quarter. Empire Life Investments Inc. purchased a new stake in Kirby during the fourth quarter valued at about $10,442,000. V Square Quantitative Management LLC grew its position in Kirby by 30.9% during the fourth quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 3,234 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $347,000 after acquiring an additional 764 shares during the period. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. grew its position in Kirby by 24.3% during the fourth quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 29,659 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $3,143,000 after acquiring an additional 5,804 shares during the period. Finally, Stanley Laman Group Ltd. grew its position in Kirby by 2.4% during the fourth quarter. Stanley Laman Group Ltd. now owns 38,803 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $4,105,000 after acquiring an additional 918 shares during the period. 96.15% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Kirby Stock Down 1.7 %

KEX traded down $1.83 on Wednesday, reaching $108.10. The company's stock had a trading volume of 567,486 shares, compared to its average volume of 691,525. The stock has a market cap of $6.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 1.19. Kirby Co. has a 1 year low of $84.56 and a 1 year high of $132.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 1.67 and a quick ratio of 1.05. The business's 50 day moving average is $107.93 and its 200 day moving average is $116.60.

Kirby (NYSE:KEX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The shipping company reported $1.29 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.30 by ($0.01). Kirby had a net margin of 8.78% and a return on equity of 9.78%. As a group, research analysts forecast that Kirby Co. will post 6.57 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Kirby

In other Kirby news, VP Scott P. Miller sold 1,244 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $107.61, for a total transaction of $133,866.84. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 5,545 shares in the company, valued at $596,697.45. The trade was a 18.32 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on KEX shares. StockNews.com downgraded Kirby from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, January 9th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on Kirby from $136.00 to $135.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $129.25.

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.