R Squared Ltd Takes Position in Kirby Co. (NYSE:KEX)

R Squared Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Kirby Co. (NYSE:KEX) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 720 shares of the shipping company’s stock, valued at approximately $76,000.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Artemis Investment Management LLP grew its position in shares of Kirby by 112.0% during the 4th quarter. Artemis Investment Management LLP now owns 382,835 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $40,504,000 after acquiring an additional 202,272 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in Kirby by 68.7% during the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 477,233 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $58,428,000 after purchasing an additional 194,410 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in Kirby by 27.8% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 699,052 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $85,585,000 after buying an additional 152,146 shares in the last quarter. Merewether Investment Management LP raised its stake in shares of Kirby by 48.7% in the third quarter. Merewether Investment Management LP now owns 234,500 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $28,710,000 after buying an additional 76,800 shares during the period. Finally, Bridgewater Associates LP purchased a new position in shares of Kirby during the 3rd quarter valued at about $6,783,000. Institutional investors own 96.15% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently issued reports on KEX. StockNews.com lowered shares of Kirby from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, January 9th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price objective on shares of Kirby from $136.00 to $135.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $124.40.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Richard Ross Stewart sold 8,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $128.21, for a total transaction of $1,025,680.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 15,488 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,985,716.48. This represents a 34.06 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, COO Christian G. O’neil sold 15,041 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $130.00, for a total transaction of $1,955,330.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 7,746 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,006,980. This trade represents a 66.01 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 25,354 shares of company stock worth $3,275,455. Corporate insiders own 1.50% of the company’s stock.

Kirby Trading Down 2.7 %

Shares of KEX opened at $109.13 on Friday. Kirby Co. has a 1 year low of $78.63 and a 1 year high of $132.21. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $111.96 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $117.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 1.67 and a quick ratio of 1.05. The firm has a market cap of $6.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.53 and a beta of 1.21.

Kirby (NYSE:KEX) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The shipping company reported $1.29 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.30 by ($0.01). Kirby had a net margin of 9.37% and a return on equity of 9.43%. On average, equities analysts expect that Kirby Co. will post 5.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.