Kirby Co. (NYSE:KEX) Shares Acquired by Trexquant Investment LP

Trexquant Investment LP raised its position in shares of Kirby Co. (NYSE:KEX) by 310.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 142,462 shares of the shipping company’s stock after purchasing an additional 107,721 shares during the period. Trexquant Investment LP’s holdings in Kirby were worth $15,072,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of KEX. Cerity Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Kirby by 68.6% during the third quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 8,152 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $998,000 after buying an additional 3,317 shares during the period. Walleye Capital LLC increased its holdings in shares of Kirby by 54.9% during the third quarter. Walleye Capital LLC now owns 20,836 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $2,551,000 after purchasing an additional 7,381 shares during the period. Captrust Financial Advisors raised its stake in shares of Kirby by 4.6% during the third quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 13,644 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $1,670,000 after purchasing an additional 597 shares in the last quarter. Paloma Partners Management Co acquired a new stake in Kirby in the third quarter worth about $403,000. Finally, Benjamin Edwards Inc. increased its stake in Kirby by 31.7% during the 3rd quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 7,833 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $959,000 after buying an additional 1,887 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 96.15% of the company’s stock.

Kirby Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:KEX opened at $101.73 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $5.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.88 and a beta of 1.18. The company’s fifty day moving average is $103.71 and its two-hundred day moving average is $113.39. The company has a quick ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 1.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. Kirby Co. has a 12-month low of $93.63 and a 12-month high of $132.21.

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Bank of America decreased their price target on Kirby from $133.00 to $123.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, March 28th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their target price on shares of Kirby from $136.00 to $135.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Kirby from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 9th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned 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 $124.75.

Insider Activity at Kirby

In other Kirby 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 transaction, the vice president now owns 5,545 shares in the company, valued at $596,697.45. This trade represents a 18.32 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.90% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.