Christian O’neil Sells 11,287 Shares of Kirby (NYSE:KEX) Stock

Kirby Corporation (NYSE:KEX) COO Christian O’neil sold 11,287 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $145.93, for a total value of $1,647,111.91. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website.

Kirby Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:KEX traded up $0.90 during trading on Monday, hitting $146.60. 493,235 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 755,525. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $138.56 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $124.55. The company has a market cap of $7.84 billion, a PE ratio of 22.55, a P/E/G ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a current ratio of 1.59, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. Kirby Corporation has a 12-month low of $79.51 and a 12-month high of $157.69.

Kirby (NYSE:KEX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The shipping company reported $1.50 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.41 by $0.09. Kirby had a return on equity of 10.62% and a net margin of 10.51%.The business had revenue of $844.10 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $832.57 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.33 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 7.4% on a year-over-year basis. Kirby has set its FY 2026 guidance at 6.650-7.280 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Kirby Corporation will post 6.99 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Kirby

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in KEX. Maseco LLP bought a new position in Kirby in the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. First Horizon Corp acquired a new position in Kirby in the third quarter worth approximately $30,000. Rothschild Investment LLC grew its position in Kirby by 2,600.0% in the fourth quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC now owns 270 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 260 shares during the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its position in Kirby by 537.5% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 306 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 258 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Parallel Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Kirby by 50.0% in the 4th quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 402 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $44,000 after purchasing an additional 134 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 96.15% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have weighed in on KEX shares. Zacks Research raised Kirby from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, March 13th. Citigroup upped their price objective on Kirby from $147.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 9th. BTIG Research increased their price target on Kirby from $160.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Evercore restated an “outperform” rating and set a $158.00 target price on shares of Kirby in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded Kirby from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Friday. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $146.20.

Kirby Company 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.