Keene & Associates Inc. Lowers Stock Holdings in Kirby Co. (NYSE:KEX)

Keene & Associates Inc. cut its stake in shares of Kirby Co. (NYSE:KEX) by 18.3% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 4,829 shares of the shipping company’s stock after selling 1,079 shares during the quarter. Keene & Associates Inc.’s holdings in Kirby were worth $578,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of KEX. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in Kirby by 70.7% during the 2nd quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 74,875 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $8,965,000 after purchasing an additional 31,011 shares during the period. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Kirby by 882.8% during the second quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 68,502 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $8,202,000 after buying an additional 61,532 shares during the period. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale purchased a new position in shares of Kirby during the second quarter valued at $175,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in Kirby by 78.4% in the second quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 23,776 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $2,847,000 after acquiring an additional 10,449 shares during the period. Finally, Nicholas Investment Partners LP purchased a new stake in Kirby in the second quarter worth about $5,270,000. Institutional investors own 96.15% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Kirby

In related news, COO Christian G. O’neil sold 2,770 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $110.21, for a total value of $305,281.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 16,079 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,772,066.59. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, CEO David W. Grzebinski sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $120.31, for a total value of $360,930.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 63,399 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,627,533.69. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, COO Christian G. O’neil sold 2,770 shares of Kirby stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $110.21, for a total value of $305,281.70. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 16,079 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,772,066.59. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 1.50% of the company’s stock.

Kirby Price Performance

Shares of KEX opened at $119.03 on Monday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $118.18 and a two-hundred day moving average of $111.11. The company has a quick ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 1.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. Kirby Co. has a twelve month low of $72.11 and a twelve month high of $130.90. The company has a market cap of $6.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.71 and a beta of 1.17.

Kirby (NYSE:KEX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The shipping company reported $1.43 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.32 by $0.11. Kirby had a return on equity of 8.70% and a net margin of 8.72%. The firm had revenue of $824.40 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $821.65 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.95 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 6.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that Kirby Co. will post 5.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently commented on KEX. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of Kirby from $138.00 to $141.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 23rd. StockNews.com upgraded Kirby from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on Kirby from $131.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 21st. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $123.80.

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.