Kirby (NYSE:KEX) Stock Rating Raised to "Buy" at Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen upgraded Kirby from “hold” to “buy.” Eight analysts now rate the stock Buy and one rates it Hold, for an overall “Moderate Buy” consensus and an average price target of $171.43.
• Kirby reported quarterly earnings of $2.09 per share, above the $2.00 consensus estimate, while revenue of $977.21 million also topped expectations and rose 12.2% year over year.
• CEO David Grzebinski sold 18,310 shares for about $2.59 million, reducing his holdings by 18.64%.

Kirby (NYSE:KEX - Get Free Report) was upgraded by investment analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report issued on Saturday, Wall Street Zen reports.

Several other brokerages have also recently issued reports on KEX. Citigroup lowered their price objective on shares of Kirby from $170.00 to $169.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 8th. BTIG Research reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $170.00 price target on shares of Kirby in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Kirby from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research report on Monday, September 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Kirby from $200.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, October 29th. Finally, Stephens lifted their price objective on Kirby from $170.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 29th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Kirby currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $171.43.

Kirby Price Performance

Shares of NYSE KEX opened at $120.88 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $6.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.23 and a beta of 0.81. The business's 50 day moving average is $136.45 and its 200-day moving average is $136.72. The company has a current ratio of 1.68, a quick ratio of 1.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. Kirby has a 1-year low of $105.10 and a 1-year high of $157.69.

Kirby (NYSE:KEX - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 28th. The shipping company reported $2.09 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.00 by $0.09. Kirby had a return on equity of 10.94% and a net margin of 10.39%. The company had revenue of $977.21 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $938.84 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.65 EPS. Kirby's quarterly revenue was up 12.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that Kirby will post 7.26 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO David Grzebinski sold 18,310 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $141.32, for a total transaction of $2,587,569.20. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 79,931 shares of the company's stock, valued at $11,295,848.92. This represents a 18.64% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 0.80% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Kirby

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in Kirby during the second quarter worth $733,274,000. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Kirby in the second quarter worth approximately $69,359,000. Bank of America Corp DE bought a new stake in shares of Kirby in the second quarter valued at about $62,549,000. Jupiter Topco LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Kirby in the second quarter valued at approximately $53,703,000. Finally, Deutsche Bank AG bought a new position in Kirby during the 2nd quarter worth about $44,984,000. Institutional investors own 96.15% of the company's stock.

About Kirby

Kirby Corporation is a Houston-based marine transportation and industrial services company. Through its marine transportation operations, the company is the largest tank barge operator in the United States, transporting bulk liquid products on the nation's inland and coastal waterways.

Kirby's marine transportation business carries petrochemicals, refined petroleum products, black oil, agricultural chemicals and other bulk liquids for industrial customers. Its operations primarily serve the U.S.

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