Kirby (NYSE:KEX) Shares Down 4.2% – Here’s Why

Shares of Kirby Co. (NYSE:KEX) traded down 4.2% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as low as $101.40 and last traded at $102.50. 144,488 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 71% from the average session volume of 500,271 shares. The stock had previously closed at $106.99.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Kirby from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $123.80.

Kirby Trading Up 1.0 %

The company has a market cap of $6.03 billion, a PE ratio of 20.18, a PEG ratio of 0.69 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a current ratio of 1.67. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $117.70 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $119.24.

Kirby (NYSE:KEX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The shipping company reported $1.55 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.47 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $831.10 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $824.42 million. Kirby had a net margin of 9.37% and a return on equity of 9.43%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.05 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Kirby Co. will post 5.45 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, COO Christian G. O’neil sold 15,041 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $130.00, for a total transaction of $1,955,330.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 7,746 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,006,980. This trade represents a 66.01 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, VP Ronald A. Dragg sold 2,313 shares of Kirby stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $127.30, for a total transaction of $294,444.90. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 7,683 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $978,045.90. The trade was a 23.14 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 25,354 shares of company stock worth $3,275,455. Corporate insiders own 1.50% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Kirby

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Acadian Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Kirby in the second quarter worth $7,920,000. Choreo LLC bought a new stake in Kirby during the second quarter valued at about $305,000. AGF Management Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Kirby in the second quarter valued at about $1,632,000. American Century Companies Inc. increased its stake in shares of Kirby by 12.5% in the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 25,067 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $3,001,000 after purchasing an additional 2,788 shares during the period. Finally, Nicholas Investment Partners LP acquired a new position in shares of Kirby during the 2nd quarter worth about $5,270,000. 96.15% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Kirby Company Profile

Kirby Corporation operates domestic tank barges in the United States. Its Marine Transportation segment provides marine transportation service and towing vessel transporting bulk liquid product, as well as operates tank barge throughout the Mississippi River System, on the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway, coastwise along three United States coasts, and in Alaska and Hawaii.