Kirby Corporation $KEX Shares Acquired by Northern Trust Corp

Key Points

• Northern Trust Corp increased its stake in Kirby Corporation by 2.8%, acquiring an additional 14,676 shares, bringing its total ownership to 532,931 shares valued at approximately $53.8 million.
• Bank of America raised its price target on Kirby from $116.00 to $125.00, maintaining a "buy" rating, with expectations for an average target price of $130.00.
• Kirby Corporation reported a quarterly earnings per share of $1.67, exceeding analysts' estimates, with a revenue of $855.46 million, reflecting a 3.8% increase from the previous year.

Northern Trust Corp increased its holdings in Kirby Corporation (NYSE:KEX - Free Report) by 2.8% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 532,931 shares of the shipping company's stock after purchasing an additional 14,676 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp owned approximately 0.94% of Kirby worth $53,831,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in KEX. Colonial Trust Co SC boosted its position in Kirby by 295.3% during the 4th quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC now owns 253 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 189 shares during the period. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Kirby in the 1st quarter worth about $28,000. KBC Group NV bought a new position in shares of Kirby in the 1st quarter worth about $32,000. UMB Bank n.a. increased its stake in shares of Kirby by 147.2% in the 1st quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 351 shares of the shipping company's stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 209 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Brooklyn Investment Group increased its stake in shares of Kirby by 40.7% in the 1st quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 394 shares of the shipping company's stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 114 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.15% of the company's stock.

Kirby Stock Performance

NYSE KEX traded down $0.14 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $97.30. 761,335 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 685,871. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.39, a P/E/G ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a current ratio of 1.74, a quick ratio of 1.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. The business's fifty day moving average price is $108.32 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $104.81. Kirby Corporation has a 52 week low of $83.94 and a 52 week high of $132.21.

Kirby (NYSE:KEX - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 31st. The shipping company reported $1.67 EPS 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 analyst estimates of $851.94 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.43 EPS. Kirby's revenue was up 3.8% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that Kirby Corporation will post 6.57 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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

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.