Kirby (NYSE:KEX) CEO Sells $2,587,569.20 in Stock

Kirby Corporation (NYSE:KEX) CEO David Grzebinski sold 18,310 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $141.32, for a total value of $2,587,569.20. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 79,931 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,295,848.92. This trade represents a 18.64% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website.

Kirby Trading Down 9.3%

Shares of NYSE KEX traded down $13.09 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $127.73. 376,878 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 638,778. Kirby Corporation has a 12-month low of $105.10 and a 12-month high of $157.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a quick ratio of 1.12 and a current ratio of 1.68. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $137.43 and a 200-day moving average price of $136.77. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.74 billion, a PE ratio of 18.49, a P/E/G ratio of 1.23 and a beta of 0.81.

Kirby (NYSE:KEX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 28th. The shipping company reported $2.09 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.00 by $0.09. Kirby had a net margin of 10.39% and a return on equity of 10.94%. The firm had revenue of $977.21 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $938.84 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.65 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 12.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Kirby Corporation will post 7.26 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of Kirby from $169.00 to $182.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 8th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Kirby from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Monday, September 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Kirby from $200.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 29th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Kirby from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 8th. Finally, Stephens upped their price objective on Kirby from $170.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 29th. Eight investment 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 company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $171.43.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in Kirby during the 2nd quarter worth about $733,274,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its position in shares of Kirby by 5.4% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,617,538 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $347,829,000 after acquiring an additional 133,030 shares in the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC raised its position in shares of Kirby by 3.3% during the 1st quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 758,029 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $100,727,000 after acquiring an additional 24,147 shares in the last quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. lifted its stake in Kirby by 8.2% during the third quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. now owns 761,099 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $99,894,000 after purchasing an additional 57,371 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC purchased a new stake in Kirby during the second quarter worth approximately $69,359,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.15% of the company’s stock.

Kirby Company Profile

Kirby Corporation is a Houston-based marine transportation and industrial services company. Through its marine transportation operations, the company is the largest tank barge operator in the United States, transporting bulk liquid products on the nation’s inland and coastal waterways.

Kirby’s marine transportation business carries petrochemicals, refined petroleum products, black oil, agricultural chemicals and other bulk liquids for industrial customers. Its operations primarily serve the U.S.