Westwood Holdings Group Inc. Makes New Investment in Kirby Co. (NYSE:KEX)

Westwood Holdings Group Inc. purchased a new stake in Kirby Co. (NYSE:KEX) in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 2,500 shares of the shipping company’s stock, valued at approximately $238,000.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of KEX. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Kirby in the fourth quarter valued at about $53,000. Fifth Third Bancorp boosted its position in Kirby by 28.1% during the 1st quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 551 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $53,000 after buying an additional 121 shares during the period. Quest Partners LLC bought a new stake in Kirby during the 4th quarter worth approximately $58,000. Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda bought a new stake in Kirby during the 4th quarter worth approximately $165,000. Finally, V Square Quantitative Management LLC acquired a new position in Kirby in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $194,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.15% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently weighed in on the stock. StockNews.com raised shares of Kirby from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th. Wolfe Research began coverage on Kirby in a research report on Monday, April 22nd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $126.00 price target on the stock. BTIG Research raised their price objective on Kirby from $100.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on Kirby from $131.00 to $132.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 21st. Finally, Bank of America raised their price target on shares of Kirby from $138.00 to $141.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Six analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $123.80.

Kirby Stock Up 1.3 %

Shares of Kirby stock opened at $119.44 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $120.69 and its 200 day moving average is $102.46. Kirby Co. has a one year low of $72.11 and a one year high of $130.90. The firm has a market cap of $6.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.24, a PEG ratio of 0.73 and a beta of 1.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 1.81 and a quick ratio of 1.12.

Kirby (NYSE:KEX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 26th. The shipping company reported $1.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.97 by $0.22. Kirby had a return on equity of 7.96% and a net margin of 8.01%. The firm had revenue of $808.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $784.49 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.68 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that Kirby Co. will post 5.3 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, VP William Matthew Woodruff sold 3,750 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $109.25, for a total transaction of $409,687.50. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 941 shares in the company, valued at $102,804.25. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, VP William Matthew Woodruff sold 3,750 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $109.25, for a total transaction of $409,687.50. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 941 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $102,804.25. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Richard Ross Stewart sold 676 shares of Kirby stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $109.60, for a total value of $74,089.60. Following the transaction, the director now owns 23,488 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,574,284.80. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 33,319 shares of company stock valued at $3,896,633 over the last ninety days. 1.50% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Kirby 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.