Portside Wealth Group LLC Makes New Investment in Kirby Corporation $KEX

Portside Wealth Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Kirby Corporation (NYSE:KEX) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 3,748 shares of the shipping company’s stock, valued at approximately $413,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Peregrine Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Kirby by 18.4% during the 3rd quarter. Peregrine Capital Management LLC now owns 131,000 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $10,932,000 after acquiring an additional 20,399 shares during the period. Campbell & CO Investment Adviser LLC acquired a new stake in Kirby during the 3rd quarter worth about $2,030,000. Citigroup Inc. raised its stake in shares of Kirby by 60.1% during the 3rd quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 44,665 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $3,727,000 after buying an additional 16,772 shares during the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Kirby by 239.4% during the 3rd quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 15,762 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $1,315,000 after buying an additional 11,118 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Luminus Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Kirby by 292.0% during the 3rd quarter. Luminus Management LLC now owns 116,956 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $9,760,000 after buying an additional 87,120 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.15% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, COO Christian G. O’neil sold 11,287 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $132.34, for a total transaction of $1,493,721.58. Following the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 11,287 shares in the company, valued at $1,493,721.58. This trade represents a 50.00% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CFO Raj Kumar sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $132.70, for a total value of $398,100.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 4,494 shares in the company, valued at $596,353.80. This trade represents a 40.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last three months, insiders sold 71,495 shares of company stock worth $9,226,173. 0.80% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Kirby Price Performance

NYSE:KEX opened at $140.66 on Thursday. Kirby Corporation has a 52 week low of $79.51 and a 52 week high of $142.30. The company has a quick ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 1.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.54 billion, a PE ratio of 22.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.22 and a beta of 0.83. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $128.64 and its 200-day moving average price is $113.56.

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have weighed in on KEX. Wolfe Research reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $136.00 price objective on shares of Kirby in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Evercore reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $138.00 price objective on shares of Kirby in a research note on Monday, March 9th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on Kirby from $145.00 to $147.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. BTIG Research reduced their price objective on Kirby from $140.00 to $135.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded Kirby from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Friday, March 27th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $132.60.

About Kirby

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.