Tectonic Advisors LLC Grows Stock Holdings in Kirby Co. (NYSE:KEX)

Tectonic Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Kirby Co. (NYSE:KEX - Free Report) by 4.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 60,188 shares of the shipping company's stock after purchasing an additional 2,732 shares during the period. Tectonic Advisors LLC owned approximately 0.10% of Kirby worth $6,368,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in KEX. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its position in shares of Kirby by 27.5% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 142,265 shares of the shipping company's stock worth $17,418,000 after purchasing an additional 30,713 shares during the last quarter. Creative Planning lifted its holdings in Kirby by 2.2% during the 3rd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 6,683 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $818,000 after buying an additional 147 shares in the last quarter. Atria Investments Inc boosted its position in Kirby by 27.5% in the 3rd quarter. Atria Investments Inc now owns 35,353 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $4,328,000 after buying an additional 7,629 shares during the period. Advantage Alpha Capital Partners LP grew its stake in Kirby by 51.2% in the 3rd quarter. Advantage Alpha Capital Partners LP now owns 48,693 shares of the shipping company's stock worth $5,961,000 after acquiring an additional 16,497 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Artemis Investment Management LLP increased its position in shares of Kirby by 112.0% during the fourth quarter. Artemis Investment Management LLP now owns 382,835 shares of the shipping company's stock worth $40,504,000 after acquiring an additional 202,272 shares during the period. 96.15% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently issued reports on KEX. StockNews.com cut Kirby from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 9th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price target on Kirby from $136.00 to $135.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $129.25.

Kirby Stock Down 0.8 %

KEX stock traded down $0.83 during trading on Friday, hitting $106.32. 520,856 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 728,154. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $109.89 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $117.23. The company has a quick ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 1.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.65, a PEG ratio of 0.89 and a beta of 1.19. Kirby Co. has a 1 year low of $83.24 and a 1 year high of $132.21.

Kirby (NYSE:KEX - Get Free Report) last released 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 9.78% and a net margin of 8.78%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Kirby Co. will post 6.54 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Kirby

In other news, VP Scott P. Miller sold 1,244 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $107.61, for a total value of $133,866.84. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 5,545 shares of the company's stock, valued at $596,697.45. This trade represents a 18.32 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, COO Christian G. O'neil sold 15,041 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $130.00, for a total value of $1,955,330.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 7,746 shares in the company, valued at $1,006,980. This represents a 66.01 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 24,285 shares of company stock valued at $3,114,877. 1.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.