Man Group plc Invests $14.23 Million in Kirby Corporation $KEX

Man Group plc purchased a new stake in shares of Kirby Corporation (NYSE:KEX) in the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor purchased 104,687 shares of the shipping company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,234,000.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in Kirby in the second quarter worth approximately $733,274,000. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its position in Kirby by 92.0% in the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 2,612,119 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $287,803,000 after acquiring an additional 1,251,700 shares in the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP increased its stake in shares of Kirby by 109.4% during the 4th quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 2,256,667 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $248,640,000 after purchasing an additional 1,178,963 shares during the last quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. increased its stake in shares of Kirby by 72.5% during the 2nd quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 2,282,865 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $258,900,000 after purchasing an additional 959,209 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Kirby during the 4th quarter valued at $81,355,000. Institutional investors own 96.15% of the company’s stock.

Kirby Trading Up 0.7%

Shares of KEX stock opened at $139.96 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.25 and a beta of 0.84. Kirby Corporation has a 1 year low of $79.51 and a 1 year high of $157.69. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $138.44 and its 200 day simple moving average is $137.87. The company has a current ratio of 1.68, a quick ratio of 1.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30.

Kirby (NYSE:KEX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The shipping company reported $1.67 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.63 by $0.04. Kirby had a net margin of 10.18% and a return on equity of 10.44%. The firm had revenue of $922.40 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $870.38 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.67 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 7.8% on a year-over-year basis. Kirby has set its FY 2026 guidance at 7.280-7.280 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Kirby Corporation will post 7.07 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Kirby from $165.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Evercore restated an “outperform” rating and set a $158.00 target price on shares of Kirby in a report on Friday, May 1st. Bank of America boosted their price target on Kirby from $169.00 to $182.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 8th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Kirby from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 8th. Finally, BTIG Research reissued a “buy” rating and set a $170.00 price objective on shares of Kirby in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $163.20.

Kirby Profile

Kirby Corporation is a leading domestic maritime transporter of bulk liquid products in the United States. Through its Marine Transportation segment, the company operates one of North America’s largest fleets of inland tank barges and towing vessels. Kirby’s fleet moves petrochemicals, black oil, refined petroleum products and agricultural chemicals along coastal and inland waterways, providing critical logistical support to energy, chemical and agricultural producers.

In addition to its marine operations, Kirby’s Distribution and Services segment offers diesel engine and power generation services, along with aftermarket parts sales.