New York State Common Retirement Fund Increases Stock Position in Kirby Corporation (NYSE:KEX)

New York State Common Retirement Fund boosted its position in shares of Kirby Corporation (NYSE:KEX - Free Report) by 23.1% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 31,960 shares of the shipping company's stock after buying an additional 6,000 shares during the quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund owned approximately 0.06% of Kirby worth $3,228,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of KEX. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Kirby during the 4th quarter worth approximately $74,293,000. Select Equity Group L.P. boosted its stake in shares of Kirby by 59.0% in the fourth quarter. Select Equity Group L.P. now owns 1,565,693 shares of the shipping company's stock worth $165,650,000 after acquiring an additional 581,215 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP increased its position in shares of Kirby by 69.7% during the fourth quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 876,292 shares of the shipping company's stock worth $92,712,000 after purchasing an additional 359,770 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its stake in Kirby by 848.5% in the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 393,647 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $41,648,000 after purchasing an additional 352,144 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. raised its stake in Kirby by 122.3% in the 1st quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. now owns 633,812 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $64,022,000 after purchasing an additional 348,665 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.15% of the company's stock.

Kirby Stock Performance

Shares of KEX stock opened at $115.09 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $6.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.79, a PEG ratio of 1.04 and a beta of 0.96. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $112.86 and a 200 day moving average price of $105.76. The company has a current ratio of 1.58, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. Kirby Corporation has a 12 month low of $83.94 and a 12 month high of $132.21.

Kirby (NYSE:KEX - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The shipping company reported $1.33 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.27 by $0.06. Kirby had a net margin of 9.02% and a return on equity of 9.81%. The company had revenue of $785.66 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $824.12 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.19 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was down 2.8% 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.

Analyst Ratings Changes

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

Kirby 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.

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