Natixis Invests $1.18 Million in Kirby Co. (NYSE:KEX)

Natixis purchased a new position in shares of Kirby Co. (NYSE:KEX - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 11,125 shares of the shipping company's stock, valued at approximately $1,177,000.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in KEX. Empowered Funds LLC acquired a new position in shares of Kirby in the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. R Squared Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Kirby in the fourth quarter worth $76,000. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board raised its stake in shares of Kirby by 433.3% in the 4th quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 1,600 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $169,000 after acquiring an additional 1,300 shares during the period. Signaturefd LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Kirby by 13.1% during the 4th quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 1,746 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $185,000 after acquiring an additional 202 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Huntington National Bank increased its holdings in Kirby by 6.8% in the 4th quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 1,781 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $188,000 after purchasing an additional 113 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.15% of the company's stock.

Kirby Stock Down 0.2 %

Shares of KEX traded down $0.18 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $95.60. The company's stock had a trading volume of 68,977 shares, compared to its average volume of 532,274. The company has a market cap of $5.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.47, a P/E/G ratio of 0.88 and a beta of 0.99. The company has a quick ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 1.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. The company has a fifty day moving average of $97.95 and a two-hundred day moving average of $109.24. Kirby Co. has a twelve month low of $83.94 and a twelve month high of $132.21.

Kirby (NYSE:KEX - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The shipping company reported $1.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.30 by ($0.01). Kirby had a net margin of 8.78% and a return on equity of 9.71%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Kirby Co. will post 6.57 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have commented on the company. Bank of America reduced their price objective on Kirby from $133.00 to $123.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, March 28th. StockNews.com cut Kirby from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, January 9th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price objective on shares of Kirby from $136.00 to $135.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 31st.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Kirby news, VP Scott P. Miller sold 1,244 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $107.61, for a total transaction of $133,866.84. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 5,545 shares in the company, valued at $596,697.45. This represents a 18.32 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Insiders own 0.90% of the company's stock.

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.