Principal Financial Group Inc. Has $22.16 Million Stock Holdings in Kirby Corporation $KEX

Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Kirby Corporation (NYSE:KEX) by 42.9% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 166,734 shares of the shipping company’s stock after purchasing an additional 50,092 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Kirby were worth $22,156,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Maseco LLP acquired a new position in Kirby in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Rothschild Investment LLC grew its holdings 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 purchasing an additional 260 shares during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its stake in Kirby by 537.5% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 306 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 258 shares in the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC increased its stake in Kirby by 50.0% in the fourth quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 402 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 134 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Root Financial Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of Kirby by 182.9% during the first quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 430 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $57,000 after purchasing an additional 278 shares during the period. 96.15% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP William Matthew Woodruff sold 678 shares of Kirby stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $147.37, for a total transaction of $99,916.86. Following the transaction, the vice president owned 9 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,326.33. The trade was a 98.69% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, COO Christian G. O’neil sold 11,287 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction 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 disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 17,691 shares of company stock valued at $2,579,036. Company insiders own 0.80% of the company’s stock.

Kirby Stock Up 2.8%

Shares of NYSE KEX opened at $148.61 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 1.59 and a quick ratio of 1.01. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $141.38 and a 200-day moving average price of $135.10. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.86, a P/E/G ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 0.83. Kirby Corporation has a 1 year low of $79.51 and a 1 year high of $157.69.

Kirby (NYSE:KEX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The shipping company reported $1.50 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.41 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $844.10 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $832.57 million. Kirby had a net margin of 10.51% and a return on equity of 10.62%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.33 EPS. Kirby has set its FY 2026 guidance at 6.650-7.280 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Kirby Corporation will post 7.06 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Bank of America increased their price objective on shares of Kirby from $169.00 to $182.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 8th. Evercore reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $158.00 price target on shares of Kirby in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Citigroup increased their price target on Kirby from $160.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, July 13th. BTIG Research reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $170.00 price objective on shares of Kirby in a research note on Tuesday, July 14th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised Kirby from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Friday. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $162.20.

About Kirby

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.