Hsbc Holdings PLC Increases Stake in Kirby Co. (NYSE:KEX)

Hsbc Holdings PLC boosted its stake in Kirby Co. (NYSE:KEX - Free Report) by 117.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 9,882 shares of the shipping company's stock after buying an additional 5,343 shares during the period. Hsbc Holdings PLC's holdings in Kirby were worth $1,047,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its stake in Kirby by 27.5% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 142,265 shares of the shipping company's stock worth $17,418,000 after purchasing an additional 30,713 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Kirby by 2.6% during the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 415,042 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $43,911,000 after buying an additional 10,486 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Kirby in the 4th quarter worth about $18,749,000. Artemis Investment Management LLP increased its stake in shares of Kirby by 112.0% in the 4th quarter. Artemis Investment Management LLP now owns 382,835 shares of the shipping company's stock worth $40,504,000 after acquiring an additional 202,272 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Asset Management One Co. Ltd. lifted its position in Kirby by 24.3% during the 4th quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 29,659 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $3,143,000 after acquiring an additional 5,804 shares during the period. 96.15% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have weighed in on KEX. Bank of America decreased their target price on shares of Kirby from $133.00 to $123.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, March 28th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price objective on Kirby from $136.00 to $135.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, StockNews.com cut Kirby from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 9th.

Kirby Trading Up 5.3 %

Shares of NYSE KEX opened at $104.88 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $5.97 billion, a PE ratio of 21.36, a P/E/G ratio of 0.88 and a beta of 0.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a current ratio of 1.45. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $97.67 and its 200-day moving average price is $108.67. Kirby Co. has a 52-week low of $83.94 and a 52-week high of $132.21.

Kirby (NYSE:KEX - Get Free Report) last issued its 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 return on equity of 9.71% and a net margin of 8.78%. The business had revenue of $785.66 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $824.12 million. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.19 EPS. The company's revenue was down 2.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts expect that Kirby Co. will post 6.57 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Scott P. Miller sold 1,244 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $107.61, for a total transaction of $133,866.84. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 5,545 shares of the company's stock, valued at $596,697.45. The trade was a 18.32 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.90% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding KEX? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Kirby Co. (NYSE:KEX - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.