Kirby (NYSE:KEX) Price Target Increased to $118.00 by Analysts at Stifel Nicolaus

Kirby (NYSE:KEX - Free Report) had its target price raised by Stifel Nicolaus from $100.00 to $118.00 in a research report sent to investors on Friday morning, Benzinga reports. Stifel Nicolaus currently has a buy rating on the shipping company's stock.

A number of other analysts have also recently commented on KEX. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Kirby from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research report on Tuesday. BTIG Research increased their price target on Kirby from $100.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Finally, Stephens reaffirmed an overweight rating and issued a $105.00 price target on shares of Kirby in a research note on Monday, February 5th.

Kirby Trading Up 0.9 %

Shares of KEX stock traded up $0.86 on Friday, reaching $95.83. The company had a trading volume of 356,211 shares, compared to its average volume of 385,680. The stock has a market cap of $5.61 billion, a PE ratio of 25.76, a PEG ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a 50-day moving average of $91.01 and a 200-day moving average of $82.85. The company has a current ratio of 1.68, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. Kirby has a 12 month low of $66.42 and a 12 month high of $101.17.

Kirby (NYSE:KEX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 1st. The shipping company reported $1.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.03 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $799.18 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $778.70 million. Kirby had a net margin of 7.21% and a return on equity of 7.12%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 9.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.67 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Kirby will post 4.94 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Christian G. O'neil sold 8,994 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.15, for a total transaction of $765,839.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 16,079 shares in the company, valued at $1,369,126.85. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, VP Scott P. Miller sold 487 shares of Kirby stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $99.78, for a total value of $48,592.86. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 1,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at $99,780. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Christian G. O'neil sold 8,994 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.15, for a total value of $765,839.10. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 16,079 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,369,126.85. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 56,418 shares of company stock worth $4,932,521 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 1.50% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Kirby

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. State of Michigan Retirement System raised its position in Kirby by 2.8% during the first quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 14,559 shares of the shipping company's stock worth $1,388,000 after acquiring an additional 400 shares in the last quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. increased its stake in shares of Kirby by 21.4% during the 1st quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. now owns 896,257 shares of the shipping company's stock worth $85,432,000 after purchasing an additional 157,880 shares during the last quarter. Benson Investment Management Company Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Kirby in the 1st quarter valued at about $3,659,000. Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda acquired a new stake in Kirby in the 4th quarter valued at about $165,000. Finally, Quadrature Capital Ltd grew its holdings in Kirby by 166.6% during the fourth quarter. Quadrature Capital Ltd now owns 10,934 shares of the shipping company's stock worth $859,000 after purchasing an additional 6,832 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.15% 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.