Kirby (NYSE:KEX) Shares Gap Up on Earnings Beat

Kirby Co. (NYSE:KEX)’s stock price gapped up before the market opened on Thursday after the company announced better than expected quarterly earnings. The stock had previously closed at $101.05, but opened at $104.15. Kirby shares last traded at $109.19, with a volume of 173,414 shares traded.

The shipping company reported $1.19 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.97 by $0.22. Kirby had a return on equity of 8.00% and a net margin of 8.01%. The business had revenue of $808.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $784.49 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.68 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.7% on a year-over-year basis.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

KEX has been the topic of a number of research reports. StockNews.com raised Kirby from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 16th. BTIG Research upped their price objective on Kirby from $100.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on Kirby in a report on Monday, April 22nd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $126.00 price objective on the stock. Stephens reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $105.00 price objective on shares of Kirby in a report on Monday, February 5th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on Kirby from $100.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, April 19th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, Kirby currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $116.00.

Insider Transactions at Kirby

In related news, VP Scott P. Miller sold 487 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $99.78, for a total value of $48,592.86. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 1,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $99,780. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other Kirby news, VP Scott P. Miller sold 487 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $99.78, for a total value of $48,592.86. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 1,000 shares in the company, valued at $99,780. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Christian G. O’neil sold 8,994 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $85.15, for a total value of $765,839.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 16,079 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,369,126.85. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 56,418 shares of company stock valued at $4,932,521. 1.50% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Kirby

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of KEX. Park West Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Kirby during the fourth quarter worth about $61,824,000. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Kirby in the fourth quarter worth approximately $51,781,000. FMR LLC increased its holdings in Kirby by 30.9% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 2,100,068 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $173,886,000 after purchasing an additional 495,541 shares in the last quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. increased its holdings in Kirby by 21.4% in the first quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. now owns 896,257 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $85,432,000 after purchasing an additional 157,880 shares in the last quarter. Finally, RK Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Kirby in the third quarter worth approximately $8,412,000. 96.15% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Kirby Stock Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $6.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.49, a P/E/G ratio of 1.88 and a beta of 1.21. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $93.25 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $83.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 1.68 and a quick ratio of 1.01.

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.