Kirby (KEX) Competitors

Kirby (NYSE:KEX) and Archrock (NYSE:AROC) are related mid-cap companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their dividends, institutional ownership, earnings, analyst recommendations, valuation, media sentiment, profitability and risk.

Do institutionals and insiders have more ownership in KEX or AROC?

96.2% of Kirby shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 95.5% of Archrock shares are held by institutional investors. 0.9% of Kirby shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 2.6% of Archrock shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Does the media favor KEX or AROC?

In the previous week, Kirby had 4 more articles in the media than Archrock. MarketBeat recorded 16 mentions for Kirby and 12 mentions for Archrock. Archrock's average media sentiment score of 1.11 beat Kirby's score of 0.90 indicating that Archrock is being referred to more favorably in the news media.

Company	Very Positive	Positive	Neutral	Negative	Very Negative	Overall Sentiment
Kirby	11 Very Positive mention(s)	2 Positive mention(s)	3 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive
Archrock	6 Very Positive mention(s)	0 Positive mention(s)	3 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive

Which has more volatility & risk, KEX or AROC?

Kirby has a beta of 0.96, suggesting that its stock price is 4% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Archrock has a beta of 1.08, suggesting that its stock price is 8% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Do analysts rate KEX or AROC?

Kirby currently has a consensus price target of $130.00, indicating a potential upside of 11.21%. Archrock has a consensus price target of $26.67, indicating a potential upside of 8.45%. Given Kirby's stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, equities research analysts plainly believe Kirby is more favorable than Archrock.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Kirby	0 Sell rating(s)	0 Hold rating(s)	2 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	3.00
Archrock	0 Sell rating(s)	1 Hold rating(s)	6 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.86

Which has better earnings & valuation, KEX or AROC?

Kirby has higher revenue and earnings than Archrock. Archrock is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Kirby, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Company	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Kirby	$3.24B	2.02	$286.71M	$5.05	23.15
Archrock	$1.16B	3.76	$172.23M	$1.18	20.84

Is KEX or AROC more profitable?

Archrock has a net margin of 16.38% compared to Kirby's net margin of 9.02%. Archrock's return on equity of 18.31% beat Kirby's return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Kirby	9.02%	9.81%	5.50%
Archrock	16.38%	18.31%	6.21%

Summary

Kirby and Archrock tied by winning 8 of the 16 factors compared between the two stocks.