Merit Financial Group LLC Invests $390,000 in Kirby Co. (NYSE:KEX)

Merit Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in Kirby Co. (NYSE:KEX - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 3,864 shares of the shipping company's stock, valued at approximately $390,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Empowered Funds LLC purchased a new position in Kirby in the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Colonial Trust Co SC lifted its holdings in Kirby by 295.3% in the 4th quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC now owns 253 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 189 shares in the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc purchased a new position in Kirby in the 1st quarter valued at about $44,000. LGT Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Kirby in the 4th quarter valued at about $63,000. Finally, Neo Ivy Capital Management purchased a new position in Kirby in the 4th quarter valued at about $111,000. 96.15% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Bank of America upped their target price on shares of Kirby from $116.00 to $125.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 16th.

Kirby Trading Down 1.7%

NYSE:KEX traded down $1.95 on Friday, reaching $110.63. The stock had a trading volume of 417,950 shares, compared to its average volume of 544,719. The company has a market cap of $6.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.53, a P/E/G ratio of 0.88 and a beta of 0.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a current ratio of 1.45 and a quick ratio of 1.05. The firm's fifty day moving average is $103.43 and its two-hundred day moving average is $105.72. Kirby Co. has a 12-month low of $83.94 and a 12-month high of $132.21.

Kirby (NYSE:KEX - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The shipping company reported $1.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.27 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $785.66 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $824.12 million. Kirby had a net margin of 8.78% and a return on equity of 9.71%. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 2.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.19 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Kirby Co. will post 6.57 EPS for the current fiscal 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.