Bank of New York Mellon Corp Boosts Holdings in Kirby Corporation $KEX

Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Kirby Corporation (NYSE:KEX) by 1.5% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 337,835 shares of the shipping company’s stock after acquiring an additional 5,020 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp’s holdings in Kirby were worth $44,892,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of KEX. Oak Thistle LLC purchased a new position in Kirby during the fourth quarter worth $1,422,000. King Luther Capital Management Corp boosted its stake in shares of Kirby by 3.0% during the fourth quarter. King Luther Capital Management Corp now owns 1,617,100 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $178,172,000 after acquiring an additional 47,099 shares during the last quarter. Tudor Investment Corp ET AL acquired a new position in Kirby in the 3rd quarter valued at about $8,772,000. Mountaineer Partners Management LLC lifted its holdings in Kirby by 33.6% in the 4th quarter. Mountaineer Partners Management LLC now owns 87,444 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $9,635,000 after purchasing an additional 22,013 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Strs Ohio grew its holdings in shares of Kirby by 4,237.3% during the first quarter. Strs Ohio now owns 57,990 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $7,706,000 after buying an additional 56,653 shares in the last quarter. 96.15% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, COO Christian G. O’neil sold 11,287 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $145.93, for a total value of $1,647,111.91. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Amy D. Husted sold 4,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $145.43, for a total value of $581,720.00. Following the sale, the vice president directly owned 10,814 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,572,680.02. This represents a 27.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 17,691 shares of company stock valued at $2,579,036 in the last three months. 0.80% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Kirby Stock Performance

Kirby stock opened at $148.48 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.94 billion, a PE ratio of 22.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.31 and a beta of 0.83. Kirby Corporation has a one year low of $79.51 and a one year high of $157.69. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $141.52 and its 200 day moving average price is $135.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a current ratio of 1.59.

Kirby (NYSE:KEX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The shipping company reported $1.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.41 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $844.10 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $832.57 million. Kirby had a net margin of 10.51% and a return on equity of 10.62%. Kirby’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.33 earnings per share. Kirby has set its FY 2026 guidance at 6.650-7.280 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Kirby Corporation will post 7.06 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Kirby from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Friday, July 17th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Kirby from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, June 13th. Evercore reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $158.00 price objective on shares of Kirby in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Bank of America increased their target price on Kirby from $169.00 to $182.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 8th. Finally, BTIG Research reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $170.00 price target on shares of Kirby in a research note on Tuesday, July 14th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $162.20.

About Kirby

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.