Kirby Co. (NYSE:KEX) Holdings Raised by Principal Financial Group Inc.

Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Kirby Co. (NYSE:KEX – Get Rating) by 0.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 234,867 shares of the shipping company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,354 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Kirby were worth $15,114,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd bought a new position in Kirby in the 1st quarter worth $47,000. Huntington National Bank lifted its holdings in Kirby by 25.6% during the 4th quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 1,928 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $124,000 after purchasing an additional 393 shares during the last quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank lifted its holdings in Kirby by 28.9% during the 4th quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 2,255 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $145,000 after purchasing an additional 506 shares during the last quarter. Kestra Advisory Services LLC bought a new position in shares of Kirby in the fourth quarter worth about $201,000. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. bought a new position in shares of Kirby in the first quarter worth about $201,000. Institutional investors own 94.94% of the company’s stock.

Kirby Stock Down 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE:KEX opened at $73.35 on Wednesday. Kirby Co. has a 52 week low of $55.03 and a 52 week high of $76.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 1.18 and a current ratio of 1.95. The company has a market capitalization of $4.40 billion, a PE ratio of 30.31, a PEG ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.27. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $69.53 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $68.52.

Kirby (NYSE:KEX – Get Rating) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 27th. The shipping company reported $0.68 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.65 by $0.03. Kirby had a net margin of 4.98% and a return on equity of 4.99%. The firm had revenue of $750.44 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $723.67 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.29 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 22.9% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that Kirby Co. will post 3.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

KEX has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on shares of Kirby from $83.00 to $85.00 in a research note on Friday, April 28th. Bank of America increased their price objective on shares of Kirby from $77.00 to $82.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 7th. TheStreet upgraded shares of Kirby from a “c+” rating to a “b-” rating in a report on Monday, March 13th. BTIG Research increased their price objective on shares of Kirby from $80.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, March 6th. Finally, Stephens increased their price objective on shares of Kirby from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Kirby currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $86.75.

Insider Transactions at Kirby

In other news, VP Kurt A. Niemietz sold 750 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $74.23, for a total transaction of $55,672.50. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 675 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $50,105.25. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, VP Kurt A. Niemietz sold 750 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $74.23, for a total value of $55,672.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 675 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $50,105.25. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO David W. Grzebinski sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.47, for a total transaction of $217,410.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 84,006 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,087,914.82. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 5,750 shares of company stock valued at $412,383 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 1.50% of the company’s stock.

Kirby Profile

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Kirby Corp. is a tank barge operator, which engages in transporting bulk liquid products. It transports petrochemicals, black oil, refined petroleum products, and agricultural chemicals. It operates through Marine Transportation and Distribution and Services segments. The Marine Transportation segment provides marine transportation by United States flagged vessels principally of liquid cargoes throughout the United States inland waterway system.