World Kinect (NYSE:WKC) Stock Price Expected to Rise, Morgan Stanley Analyst Says

Key Points

• Morgan Stanley raised World Kinect’s price target from $30 to $32 but maintained an “underweight” rating, implying 16.88% downside from the prior close. The stock has a consensus “Strong Sell” rating, with an average target price of $32.
• World Kinect shares rose 3.9% to $38.50, despite the cautious analyst outlook. The company recently exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $0.99 EPS versus a $0.96 estimate and revenue of $13.27 billion versus $12.34 billion expected.
• Insiders sold 26,000 shares worth approximately $933,660 over the past three months, while institutional investors own 97.06% of the company.

World Kinect (NYSE:WKC - Get Free Report) had its price objective boosted by equities research analysts at Morgan Stanley from $30.00 to $32.00 in a note issued to investors on Tuesday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an "underweight" rating on the stock. Morgan Stanley's price objective points to a potential downside of 16.88% from the stock's previous close.

WKC has been the subject of several other reports. Bank of America reiterated an "underperform" rating on shares of World Kinect in a research note on Monday. Wall Street Zen lowered World Kinect from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, October 10th. Zacks Research lowered World Kinect from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, September 28th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a "sell (d)" rating on shares of World Kinect in a report on Monday, October 26th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, World Kinect currently has a consensus rating of "Strong Sell" and an average target price of $32.00.

World Kinect Trading Up 3.9%

Shares of WKC stock traded up $1.45 on Tuesday, reaching $38.50. 614,330 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 979,198. The stock has a market cap of $1.97 billion, a P/E ratio of -12.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.56 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $35.97 and a two-hundred day moving average of $30.82. World Kinect has a 1-year low of $22.21 and a 1-year high of $41.20.

World Kinect (NYSE:WKC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 29th. The company reported $0.99 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.96 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $13.27 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $12.34 billion. World Kinect had a positive return on equity of 11.24% and a negative net margin of 0.43%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 41.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.54 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that World Kinect will post 3.63 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Chairman Michael J. Kasbar sold 10,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.67, for a total transaction of $356,700.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman directly owned 956,450 shares of the company's stock, valued at $34,116,571.50. This trade represents a 1.03% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Jose-Miguel Tejada sold 6,000 shares of World Kinect stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $37.16, for a total transaction of $222,960.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 35,676 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,325,720.16. This trade represents a 14.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 26,000 shares of company stock valued at $933,660 over the last three months. 3.80% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of World Kinect

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership increased its position in World Kinect by 235.1% during the first quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 644,941 shares of the company's stock worth $14,879,000 after acquiring an additional 452,462 shares during the period. Man Group plc bought a new stake in shares of World Kinect in the second quarter valued at about $10,379,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new stake in World Kinect during the second quarter worth about $10,224,000. Counterpoint Mutual Funds LLC grew its position in World Kinect by 2,505.9% during the third quarter. Counterpoint Mutual Funds LLC now owns 295,747 shares of the company's stock worth $10,398,000 after buying an additional 284,398 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC bought a new position in World Kinect during the second quarter valued at about $7,867,000. Institutional investors own 97.06% of the company's stock.

About World Kinect

World Kinect Corporation NYSE: WKC is an energy management company that supplies, distributes and manages fuel and other energy products for commercial customers around the world. The company serves the aviation, marine and land transportation sectors, as well as commercial, industrial and government customers.

Its offerings include conventional and renewable fuels, natural gas, electricity, lubricants, fuel-management services and related environmental solutions. World Kinect also provides procurement, logistics, payment-processing and transaction-management services designed to help customers manage energy supply, costs and operational requirements.

The company was founded as World Fuel Services in 1985 and adopted the World Kinect name in 2024.

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