Axiom Investors LLC DE Sells 66,806 Shares of Kirby Corporation $KEX

Key Points

• Axiom Investors LLC DE has reduced its stake in Kirby Corporation by 56.2%, selling 66,806 shares and now holding 51,962 shares valued at approximately $5.25 million.
• Several other institutional investors have increased their holdings in Kirby Corporation, with Broklyn Investment Group raising its stake by 40.7% in the same quarter.
• Kirby reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings of $1.67 EPS and a revenue of $855.46 million, exceeding analyst estimates.

Axiom Investors LLC DE cut its stake in shares of Kirby Corporation (NYSE:KEX - Free Report) by 56.2% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 51,962 shares of the shipping company's stock after selling 66,806 shares during the period. Axiom Investors LLC DE owned 0.09% of Kirby worth $5,249,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Brooklyn Investment Group increased its position in shares of Kirby by 40.7% in the first quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 394 shares of the shipping company's stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 114 shares during the last quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. grew its position in Kirby by 0.3% during the first quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. now owns 36,597 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $3,697,000 after acquiring an additional 117 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. grew its position in Kirby by 28.7% during the first quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 668 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $67,000 after acquiring an additional 149 shares during the last quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC grew its position in Kirby by 6.4% during the fourth quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 2,685 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $284,000 after acquiring an additional 161 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State of Alaska Department of Revenue grew its position in Kirby by 2.7% during the first quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 6,726 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $679,000 after acquiring an additional 180 shares during the last quarter. 96.15% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have commented on the stock. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Kirby from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 3rd. Bank of America dropped their price objective on Kirby from $110.00 to $107.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, September 3rd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $121.00.

Kirby Stock Performance

Shares of KEX stock opened at $89.09 on Monday. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $106.13 and a 200 day moving average of $104.24. Kirby Corporation has a 52 week low of $83.94 and a 52 week high of $132.21. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.84, a PEG ratio of 0.91 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a quick ratio of 1.12, a current ratio of 1.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33.

Kirby (NYSE:KEX - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The shipping company reported $1.67 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.59 by $0.08. Kirby had a return on equity of 10.02% and a net margin of 9.25%.The company had revenue of $855.46 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $851.94 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.43 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 3.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that Kirby Corporation will post 6.57 earnings per share for the current 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.

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