Van ECK Associates Corp Buys 72,040 Shares of Kirby Corporation $KEX

Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its stake in shares of Kirby Corporation (NYSE:KEX) by 47.2% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 224,640 shares of the shipping company’s stock after buying an additional 72,040 shares during the quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp owned approximately 0.40% of Kirby worth $18,746,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in KEX. First Horizon Corp purchased a new position in shares of Kirby during the third quarter worth approximately $30,000. Bell Investment Advisors Inc boosted its holdings in shares of Kirby by 67.1% in the second quarter. Bell Investment Advisors Inc now owns 284 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 114 shares during the period. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Kirby by 559.3% in the third quarter. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC now owns 567 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 481 shares during the period. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in Kirby in the third quarter worth approximately $53,000. Finally, Huntington National Bank increased its holdings in Kirby by 21.0% during the 3rd quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 932 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $78,000 after purchasing an additional 162 shares during the period. 96.15% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Raj Kumar sold 3,000 shares of Kirby stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $132.70, for a total value of $398,100.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 4,494 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $596,353.80. The trade was a 40.03% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, VP Amy D. Husted sold 11,667 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $129.33, for a total transaction of $1,508,893.11. Following the transaction, the vice president owned 14,814 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,915,894.62. This trade represents a 44.06% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 82,640 shares of company stock worth $10,470,847. Insiders own 0.90% of the company’s stock.

Kirby Stock Up 0.3%

Shares of KEX traded up $0.37 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $124.58. The company had a trading volume of 177,072 shares, compared to its average volume of 777,976. The company has a current ratio of 1.53, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The company has a market capitalization of $6.68 billion, a PE ratio of 19.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 0.83. Kirby Corporation has a one year low of $79.51 and a one year high of $134.69. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $125.55 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $107.76.

Kirby (NYSE:KEX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 29th. The shipping company reported $1.68 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.62 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $851.78 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $857.82 million. Kirby had a return on equity of 10.53% and a net margin of 10.54%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.29 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Kirby Corporation will post 6.57 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

KEX has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Weiss Ratings lowered Kirby from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Wolfe Research restated an “outperform” rating and set a $136.00 price target on shares of Kirby in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on Kirby from $145.00 to $147.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 30th. Zacks Research cut shares of Kirby from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Thursday, February 12th. Finally, Evercore reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $138.00 target price on shares of Kirby in a research report on Monday. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $132.60.

Kirby Profile

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.