Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. Has $7.84 Million Stock Position in Kirby Co. (NYSE:KEX)

Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. cut its position in Kirby Co. (NYSE:KEX) by 6.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 74,086 shares of the shipping company’s stock after selling 5,055 shares during the period. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Kirby were worth $7,838,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. State Street Corp raised its holdings in Kirby by 0.7% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,667,520 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $204,154,000 after buying an additional 12,337 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Kirby by 0.3% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 961,303 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $117,724,000 after acquiring an additional 2,784 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Kirby by 27.8% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 699,052 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $85,585,000 after acquiring an additional 152,146 shares in the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Kirby by 68.7% in the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 477,233 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $58,428,000 after acquiring an additional 194,410 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its position in Kirby by 2.6% in the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 415,042 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $43,911,000 after acquiring an additional 10,486 shares in the last quarter. 96.15% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Kirby Trading Up 1.8 %

NYSE:KEX opened at $104.19 on Friday. Kirby Co. has a 52 week low of $86.02 and a 52 week high of $132.21. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $106.80 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $116.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a current ratio of 1.45. The firm has a market cap of $5.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.88 and a beta of 1.19.

Kirby (NYSE:KEX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The shipping company reported $1.29 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.30 by ($0.01). Kirby had a net margin of 8.78% and a return on equity of 9.71%. On average, equities analysts expect that Kirby Co. will post 6.57 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

KEX has been the subject of several analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price objective on Kirby from $136.00 to $135.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. StockNews.com downgraded Kirby from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, January 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $129.25.

Insider Transactions at Kirby

In related news, VP Scott P. Miller sold 1,244 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $107.61, for a total transaction of $133,866.84. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 5,545 shares in the company, valued at approximately $596,697.45. This represents a 18.32 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 1.50% of the company’s stock.

About Kirby

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.