Simplicity Wealth LLC Takes Position in Kirby Corporation $KEX

Simplicity Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of Kirby Corporation (NYSE:KEX) in the second quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor acquired 6,217 shares of the shipping company’s stock, valued at approximately $845,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Kirby by 92.0% in the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 2,612,119 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $287,803,000 after acquiring an additional 1,251,700 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP raised its holdings in Kirby by 109.4% during the 4th quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 2,256,667 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $248,640,000 after purchasing an additional 1,178,963 shares during the last quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. lifted its position in shares of Kirby by 72.5% in the 2nd quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 2,282,865 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $258,900,000 after purchasing an additional 959,209 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Kirby in the 4th quarter worth approximately $81,355,000. Finally, Appian Way Asset Management LP lifted its position in shares of Kirby by 335.8% in the 3rd quarter. Appian Way Asset Management LP now owns 675,546 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $56,374,000 after purchasing an additional 520,535 shares during the period. 96.15% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Kirby Price Performance

Shares of KEX opened at $138.65 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.12, a current ratio of 1.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. The business’s fifty day moving average is $138.79 and its 200 day moving average is $136.78. Kirby Corporation has a 12-month low of $79.51 and a 12-month high of $157.69. The stock has a market cap of $7.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.33, a P/E/G ratio of 1.24 and a beta of 0.84.

Kirby (NYSE:KEX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The shipping company reported $1.67 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.63 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $922.40 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $870.38 million. Kirby had a net margin of 10.18% and a return on equity of 10.44%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 7.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.67 earnings per share. Kirby has set its FY 2026 guidance at 7.280-7.280 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Kirby Corporation will post 7.07 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

More Kirby News

Here are the key news stories impacting Kirby this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Zacks raised its 2026 EPS forecast to $7.07 from $6.97 and increased its Q3 and Q4 2026 estimates to $1.96 and $1.94, respectively. Both quarterly forecasts were raised by $0.06 and $0.03.
• Positive Sentiment: Longer-term expectations also improved: FY2027 EPS was lifted to $8.57 from $8.27, while FY2028 EPS increased to $9.20 from $9.05. Zacks also raised estimates for Q2 2027, Q3 2027, Q4 2027, Q1 2028 and Q2 2028.
• Positive Sentiment: The largest quarterly increase was for Q3 2027, raised to $2.41 from $2.30. Q2 2028 EPS was increased to $2.35 from $2.17, and Q4 2027 to $2.23 from $2.16.
• Neutral Sentiment: Zacks’ FY2026 forecast of $7.07 remains below the broader analyst consensus of $7.28, although the company recently exceeded quarterly EPS and revenue expectations and reported 7.8% year-over-year revenue growth.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on KEX shares. Evercore reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $158.00 price objective on shares of Kirby in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Kirby from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, August 8th. Bank of America upped their price target on shares of Kirby from $169.00 to $182.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 8th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on Kirby from $165.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, July 31st. Finally, BTIG Research reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $170.00 price objective on shares of Kirby in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $163.20.

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.