11,200 Shares in Kirby Corporation $KEX Bought by National Bank of Canada FI

Key Points

• National Bank of Canada FI has made a new investment in Kirby Corporation, acquiring 11,200 shares valued at approximately $1.13 million during the first quarter.
• Bank of America increased its price target for Kirby from $116.00 to $125.00 and reaffirmed a "buy" rating.
• Kirby reported an EPS of $1.67 for the last quarter, exceeding analysts' expectations of $1.59, with revenue reaching $855.46 million.

National Bank of Canada FI bought a new stake in shares of Kirby Corporation (NYSE:KEX - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund bought 11,200 shares of the shipping company's stock, valued at approximately $1,131,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in KEX. Colonial Trust Co SC raised its position in shares of Kirby by 295.3% in the fourth quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC now owns 253 shares of the shipping company's stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 189 shares during the period. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Kirby during the first quarter worth approximately $28,000. KBC Group NV acquired a new stake in Kirby in the first quarter valued at approximately $32,000. UMB Bank n.a. increased its position in shares of Kirby by 147.2% in the first quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 351 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 209 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc purchased a new stake in shares of Kirby in the first quarter valued at approximately $44,000. 96.15% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of Kirby from $116.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 16th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $130.00.

Kirby Trading Down 0.9%

Shares of Kirby stock traded down $0.87 on Wednesday, reaching $97.63. The company had a trading volume of 137,033 shares, compared to its average volume of 620,839. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $110.63 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $105.34. 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 Corporation has a 52-week low of $83.94 and a 52-week high of $132.21. The firm has a market cap of $5.45 billion, a PE ratio of 18.46, a PEG ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 1.01.

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