Bellars Harris Wealth Management LLC Acquires New Holdings in Kirby Corporation $KEX

Key Points

• Bellars Harris Wealth Management acquired 55,208 Kirby shares worth approximately $7.5 million, giving it a 0.10% stake and making Kirby 1.5% of its portfolio. Institutional investors overall own 96.15% of the company.
• Analysts remain generally positive, with Kirby carrying a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating and an average price target of $163.20; Bank of America raised its target to $182, while Wall Street Zen downgraded the stock to “Hold.”
• Kirby exceeded quarterly expectations with $1.67 in EPS and $922.4 million in revenue, representing 7.8% year-over-year growth. Zacks raised its 2026 EPS forecast to $7.07, though that remains below the broader analyst consensus of $7.28.

Bellars Harris Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Kirby Corporation (NYSE:KEX - Free Report) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 55,208 shares of the shipping company's stock, valued at approximately $7,507,000. Kirby accounts for about 1.5% of Bellars Harris Wealth Management LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 28th largest position. Bellars Harris Wealth Management LLC owned approximately 0.10% of Kirby as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Kirby by 4.2% during the 1st quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,917 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $255,000 after purchasing an additional 77 shares in the last quarter. Procyon Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Kirby by 2.9% in the first quarter. Procyon Advisors LLC now owns 2,811 shares of the shipping company's stock worth $374,000 after buying an additional 78 shares in the last quarter. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Kirby by 18.2% in the first quarter. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC now owns 520 shares of the shipping company's stock worth $69,000 after buying an additional 80 shares in the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp boosted its stake in Kirby by 18.2% during the fourth quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 739 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $81,000 after buying an additional 114 shares during the period. Finally, M&T Bank Corp boosted its stake in Kirby by 2.5% during the fourth quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 5,179 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $571,000 after buying an additional 125 shares during the period. 96.15% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have weighed in on KEX. Bank of America upped their target price on Kirby from $169.00 to $182.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 8th. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Kirby from $165.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, July 31st. BTIG Research reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $170.00 target price on shares of Kirby in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Kirby from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 8th. Finally, Evercore reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $158.00 price target on shares of Kirby in a report on Friday, May 1st. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued 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 $163.20.

Kirby Price Performance

KEX opened at $138.65 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.68, a quick ratio of 1.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.33, a PEG ratio of 1.24 and a beta of 0.84. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $138.79 and a 200-day moving average price of $136.72. Kirby Corporation has a 12-month low of $79.51 and a 12-month high of $157.69.

Kirby (NYSE:KEX - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The shipping company reported $1.67 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.63 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $922.40 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $870.38 million. Kirby had a return on equity of 10.44% and a net margin of 10.18%.Kirby's revenue for the quarter was up 7.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.67 EPS. Kirby has set its FY 2026 guidance at 7.280-7.280 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Kirby Corporation will post 7.07 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

More Kirby News

Here are the key news stories impacting Kirby this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Zacks raised its 2026 EPS forecast to $7.07 from $6.97 and increased its Q3 and Q4 2026 estimates to $1.96 and $1.94, respectively. Both quarterly forecasts were raised by $0.06 and $0.03.
• Positive Sentiment: Longer-term expectations also improved: FY2027 EPS was lifted to $8.57 from $8.27, while FY2028 EPS increased to $9.20 from $9.05. Zacks also raised estimates for Q2 2027, Q3 2027, Q4 2027, Q1 2028 and Q2 2028.
• Positive Sentiment: The largest quarterly increase was for Q3 2027, raised to $2.41 from $2.30. Q2 2028 EPS was increased to $2.35 from $2.17, and Q4 2027 to $2.23 from $2.16.
• Neutral Sentiment: Zacks’ FY2026 forecast of $7.07 remains below the broader analyst consensus of $7.28, although the company recently exceeded quarterly EPS and revenue expectations and reported 7.8% year-over-year revenue growth.

Kirby Profile

Kirby Corporation is a leading domestic maritime transporter of bulk liquid products in the United States. Through its Marine Transportation segment, the company operates one of North America's largest fleets of inland tank barges and towing vessels. Kirby's fleet moves petrochemicals, black oil, refined petroleum products and agricultural chemicals along coastal and inland waterways, providing critical logistical support to energy, chemical and agricultural producers.

In addition to its marine operations, Kirby's Distribution and Services segment offers diesel engine and power generation services, along with aftermarket parts sales.

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