Kirby Corporation $KEX Shares Bought by Goldman Sachs Group Inc.

Key Points

• Goldman Sachs significantly increased its Kirby Corporation stake in the fourth quarter, buying an additional 1.25 million shares and lifting its holdings to 2.61 million shares worth about $287.8 million.
• Institutional interest in KEX remains strong, with several other hedge funds and asset managers also boosting or starting positions; overall, institutions and hedge funds own about 96.15% of the stock.
• Kirby recently beat quarterly expectations, reporting $1.50 EPS on revenue of $844.1 million, while analysts currently rate the stock a Moderate Buy with a consensus price target of $146.20.

Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its holdings in Kirby Corporation (NYSE:KEX - Free Report) by 92.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,612,119 shares of the shipping company's stock after purchasing an additional 1,251,700 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. owned about 4.82% of Kirby worth $287,803,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in KEX. Alliancebernstein L.P. raised its position in shares of Kirby by 72.5% during the 2nd quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 2,282,865 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $258,900,000 after acquiring an additional 959,209 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Kirby during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $81,355,000. Congress Asset Management Co. acquired a new stake in shares of Kirby during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $58,385,000. Appian Way Asset Management LP raised its position in shares of Kirby by 335.8% during the 3rd quarter. Appian Way Asset Management LP now owns 675,546 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $56,374,000 after acquiring an additional 520,535 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Millennium Management LLC raised its position in shares of Kirby by 108.4% during the 3rd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 839,662 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $70,070,000 after acquiring an additional 436,735 shares in the last quarter. 96.15% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Kirby news, VP Amy D. Husted sold 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $145.43, for a total value of $581,720.00. Following the sale, the vice president directly owned 10,814 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,572,680.02. This trade represents a 27.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, COO Christian G. O'neil sold 11,287 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $145.93, for a total value of $1,647,111.91. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 17,691 shares of company stock valued at $2,579,036 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.80% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

KEX has been the topic of several research reports. Zacks Research raised Kirby from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, March 13th. BTIG Research upped their price target on Kirby from $160.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Wall Street Zen lowered Kirby from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, May 23rd. Evercore reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $158.00 price target on shares of Kirby in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised Kirby from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research report on Friday, May 29th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $146.20.

Kirby Price Performance

Shares of NYSE KEX opened at $141.09 on Friday. Kirby Corporation has a 1-year low of $79.51 and a 1-year high of $157.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 1.59 and a quick ratio of 1.01. The business's fifty day moving average price is $143.14 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $128.48. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.55 billion, a PE ratio of 21.71, a P/E/G ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 0.81.

Kirby (NYSE:KEX - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The shipping company reported $1.50 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.41 by $0.09. Kirby had a return on equity of 10.62% and a net margin of 10.51%.The firm had revenue of $844.10 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $832.57 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.33 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 7.4% on a year-over-year basis. Kirby has set its FY 2026 guidance at 6.650-7.280 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Kirby Corporation will post 6.99 EPS for the current year.

Kirby Company 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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