Great Lakes Advisors LLC Has $13.61 Million Holdings in Kirby Co. (NYSE:KEX)

Great Lakes Advisors LLC reduced its position in Kirby Co. (NYSE:KEX) by 3.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 128,616 shares of the shipping company’s stock after selling 3,921 shares during the period. Great Lakes Advisors LLC owned about 0.22% of Kirby worth $13,608,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of KEX. Artemis Investment Management LLP increased its position in Kirby by 112.0% in the 4th quarter. Artemis Investment Management LLP now owns 382,835 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $40,504,000 after purchasing an additional 202,272 shares during the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its position in Kirby by 68.7% in the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 477,233 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $58,428,000 after purchasing an additional 194,410 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in Kirby in the 4th quarter worth about $18,749,000. DAVENPORT & Co LLC acquired a new position in Kirby in the 4th quarter worth about $16,390,000. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in Kirby by 27.8% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 699,052 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $85,585,000 after purchasing an additional 152,146 shares during the last quarter. 96.15% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Kirby

In related news, VP Scott P. Miller sold 1,244 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $107.61, for a total transaction of $133,866.84. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 5,545 shares in the company, valued at $596,697.45. This represents a 18.32 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 1.50% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have weighed in on KEX. StockNews.com lowered Kirby from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 9th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price objective on Kirby from $136.00 to $135.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $129.25.

Kirby Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE KEX opened at $96.63 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a current ratio of 1.45. The firm has a market cap of $5.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.68, a P/E/G ratio of 0.88 and a beta of 1.18. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $105.47 and its 200-day simple moving average is $114.96. Kirby Co. has a 52 week low of $87.57 and a 52 week high of $132.21.

Kirby (NYSE:KEX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The shipping company reported $1.29 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.30 by ($0.01). Kirby had a net margin of 8.78% and a return on equity of 9.71%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Kirby Co. will post 6.57 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kirby Profile

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.