Kirby Co. (NYSE:KEX) VP Ronald A. Dragg Sells 1,570 Shares

Kirby Co. (NYSE:KEX) VP Ronald A. Dragg sold 1,570 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $112.28, for a total transaction of $176,279.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 9,081 shares in the company, valued at $1,019,614.68. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink.

Kirby Price Performance

NYSE KEX traded up $0.93 on Thursday, hitting $115.94. The stock had a trading volume of 85,248 shares, compared to its average volume of 421,745. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $97.14 and a 200-day moving average of $85.40. The company has a market capitalization of $6.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.77 and a beta of 1.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a current ratio of 1.68. Kirby Co. has a 52-week low of $69.22 and a 52-week high of $116.47.

Kirby (NYSE:KEX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 26th. The shipping company reported $1.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.97 by $0.22. The company had revenue of $808.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $784.49 million. Kirby had a return on equity of 8.00% and a net margin of 8.01%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 7.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.68 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that Kirby Co. will post 5.2 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently commented on the company. Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $105.00 price objective on shares of Kirby in a research note on Monday, February 5th. BTIG Research lifted their price objective on Kirby from $100.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Wolfe Research started coverage on shares of Kirby in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $126.00 target price for the company. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Kirby from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on Kirby from $100.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 19th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $116.00.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Kirby

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in KEX. Fifth Third Bancorp lifted its position in Kirby by 28.1% in the first quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 551 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $53,000 after purchasing an additional 121 shares during the last quarter. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Kirby during the 4th quarter valued at $53,000. NBC Securities Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Kirby in the third quarter valued at about $59,000. Quest Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Kirby during the fourth quarter valued at about $58,000. Finally, Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda purchased a new stake in shares of Kirby during the fourth quarter worth about $165,000. Institutional investors own 96.15% of the company’s stock.

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.