Janus Henderson Group PLC Boosts Stake in Kirby Co. (NYSE:KEX)

Janus Henderson Group PLC raised its stake in shares of Kirby Co. (NYSE:KEX - Free Report) by 0.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 554,190 shares of the shipping company's stock after purchasing an additional 2,550 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC owned 0.97% of Kirby worth $58,634,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Franklin Resources Inc. bought a new position in shares of Kirby during the third quarter valued at approximately $5,136,000. Oak Thistle LLC bought a new position in Kirby in the 4th quarter valued at $614,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its stake in Kirby by 32.3% in the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 184,061 shares of the shipping company's stock worth $19,474,000 after purchasing an additional 44,959 shares during the period. Artemis Investment Management LLP lifted its position in shares of Kirby by 112.0% during the fourth quarter. Artemis Investment Management LLP now owns 382,835 shares of the shipping company's stock worth $40,504,000 after purchasing an additional 202,272 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Janney Montgomery Scott LLC boosted its stake in shares of Kirby by 1.3% during the fourth quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 8,459 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $895,000 after purchasing an additional 108 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.15% of the company's stock.

Kirby Stock Performance

Shares of KEX stock traded down $0.30 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $109.95. The company's stock had a trading volume of 66,748 shares, compared to its average volume of 539,512. The stock has a market cap of $6.17 billion, a PE ratio of 22.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.88 and a beta of 0.91. Kirby Co. has a 12-month low of $83.94 and a 12-month high of $132.21. The company has a 50 day moving average of $99.04 and a 200 day moving average of $107.49. The company has a current ratio of 1.45, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26.

Kirby (NYSE:KEX - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The shipping company reported $1.33 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.27 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $785.66 million during 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 business's quarterly revenue was down 2.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.19 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Kirby Co. will post 6.57 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the company. Bank of America boosted their price target on Kirby from $116.00 to $125.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price target on Kirby from $136.00 to $135.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st.

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.