King Luther Capital Management Corp Grows Stock Holdings in Kirby Corporation $KEX

King Luther Capital Management Corp lifted its holdings in Kirby Corporation (NYSE:KEX) by 8.5% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,570,001 shares of the shipping company’s stock after acquiring an additional 122,733 shares during the period. King Luther Capital Management Corp’s holdings in Kirby were worth $131,017,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Ethic Inc. boosted its position in Kirby by 3.1% during the 2nd quarter. Ethic Inc. now owns 3,236 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $372,000 after purchasing an additional 98 shares during the period. Bell Investment Advisors Inc lifted its stake in shares of Kirby by 67.1% during the second quarter. Bell Investment Advisors Inc now owns 284 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 114 shares in the last quarter. State of Wyoming boosted its position in shares of Kirby by 12.8% in the third quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 1,003 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $84,000 after buying an additional 114 shares during the period. Hantz Financial Services Inc. boosted its position in shares of Kirby by 38.1% in the second quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 453 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $51,000 after buying an additional 125 shares during the period. Finally, Wedbush Securities Inc. grew its stake in shares of Kirby by 4.5% in the second quarter. Wedbush Securities Inc. now owns 2,946 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $334,000 after buying an additional 128 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.15% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

KEX has been the topic of several recent research reports. Wall Street Zen raised Kirby from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, November 1st. Wolfe Research reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $136.00 price objective on shares of Kirby in a research note on Friday, January 30th. BTIG Research decreased their target price on shares of Kirby from $140.00 to $135.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Evercore lifted their price target on shares of Kirby from $109.00 to $122.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Kirby in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Kirby currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $129.40.

Kirby Stock Up 1.1%

Shares of NYSE:KEX opened at $128.07 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $6.94 billion, a PE ratio of 20.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 0.88. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $119.62 and a 200 day simple moving average of $104.40. The company has a current ratio of 1.70, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31. Kirby Corporation has a 12-month low of $79.51 and a 12-month high of $132.18.

Kirby (NYSE:KEX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 29th. The shipping company reported $1.68 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.62 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $851.78 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $857.82 million. Kirby had a net margin of 10.54% and a return on equity of 10.55%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.29 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Kirby Corporation will post 6.57 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO David W. Grzebinski sold 29,451 shares of Kirby stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $107.41, for a total value of $3,163,331.91. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 79,709 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,561,543.69. This trade represents a 26.98% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Ronald A. Dragg sold 5,429 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $122.00, for a total value of $662,338.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 10,399 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,268,678. This trade represents a 34.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 63,898 shares of company stock valued at $7,081,741. 0.90% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Kirby Profile

Kirby Corporation is a leading domestic maritime transporter of bulk liquid products in the United States. Through its Marine Transportation segment, the company operates one of North America’s largest fleets of inland tank barges and towing vessels. Kirby’s fleet moves petrochemicals, black oil, refined petroleum products and agricultural chemicals along coastal and inland waterways, providing critical logistical support to energy, chemical and agricultural producers.

In addition to its marine operations, Kirby’s Distribution and Services segment offers diesel engine and power generation services, along with aftermarket parts sales.