Great Lakes Advisors LLC Sells 41,782 Shares of Kirby Corporation $KEX

Key Points

• Great Lakes Advisors LLC decreased its ownership in Kirby Corporation by 32.5%, selling 41,782 shares and holding 86,834 shares worth approximately $8.77 million by the end of the most recent quarter.
• Institutions own 96.15% of Kirby's stock, with several other investors, including Brooklyn Investment Group and Brown Advisory Inc., increasing their stakes during the same period.
• Analysts have upgraded Kirby's rating to a "hold" and set an average price target of $121.00 after the company reported earnings of $1.67 per share, exceeding expectations.

Great Lakes Advisors LLC decreased its holdings in Kirby Corporation (NYSE:KEX - Free Report) by 32.5% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 86,834 shares of the shipping company's stock after selling 41,782 shares during the period. Great Lakes Advisors LLC owned about 0.15% of Kirby worth $8,771,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Select Equity Group L.P. increased its holdings in shares of Kirby by 24.8% in the 1st quarter. Select Equity Group L.P. now owns 1,954,698 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $197,444,000 after purchasing an additional 389,005 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC increased its holdings in shares of Kirby by 9.0% in the 1st quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 1,300,103 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $131,323,000 after purchasing an additional 107,240 shares during the period. Encompass Capital Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Kirby by 32.1% in the 1st quarter. Encompass Capital Advisors LLC now owns 925,357 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $93,470,000 after purchasing an additional 224,999 shares during the period. Park West Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Kirby by 69.3% in the 1st quarter. Park West Asset Management LLC now owns 776,000 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $78,384,000 after purchasing an additional 317,721 shares during the period. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Kirby by 5.2% in the 1st quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 703,013 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $71,010,000 after purchasing an additional 34,762 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.15% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Bank of America dropped their target price on Kirby from $110.00 to $107.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, September 3rd. Zacks Research upgraded Kirby from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, September 3rd. Two equities 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, Kirby has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $121.00.

Kirby Stock Down 2.2%

Shares of NYSE KEX traded down $1.91 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $86.09. The stock had a trading volume of 858,640 shares, compared to its average volume of 910,583. The company has a market capitalization of $4.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.27, a P/E/G ratio of 0.88 and a beta of 1.09. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $103.29 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $103.75. Kirby Corporation has a 52 week low of $83.94 and a 52 week high of $132.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 1.12 and a current ratio of 1.74.

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, beating the consensus estimate of $1.59 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $855.46 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $851.94 million. Kirby had a return on equity of 10.02% and a net margin of 9.25%.The firm's quarterly revenue was up 3.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.43 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Kirby Corporation will post 6.57 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About Kirby

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.