Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. Lowers Holdings in Kirby Co. (NYSE:KEX)

Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. trimmed its position in shares of Kirby Co. (NYSE:KEX) by 14.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 557,547 shares of the shipping company’s stock after selling 94,055 shares during the quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. owned about 0.96% of Kirby worth $68,260,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of KEX. Royce & Associates LP raised its holdings in Kirby by 2.4% in the 3rd quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 217,130 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $26,583,000 after acquiring an additional 5,171 shares during the last quarter. Huntington National Bank raised its position in Kirby by 8.5% in the 3rd quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 1,668 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $204,000 after buying an additional 130 shares during the last quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Kirby by 15.5% during the 3rd quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 79,141 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $9,689,000 after acquiring an additional 10,639 shares during the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Kirby by 68.7% in the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 477,233 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $58,428,000 after acquiring an additional 194,410 shares during the period. Finally, Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC lifted its position in Kirby by 16.1% during the third quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC now owns 20,427 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $2,501,000 after purchasing an additional 2,834 shares during the period. 96.15% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

KEX has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Kirby from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, September 22nd. Bank of America upped their price objective on Kirby from $138.00 to $141.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $123.80.

Kirby Price Performance

Shares of Kirby stock opened at $128.04 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $122.45 and its 200 day moving average is $119.73. Kirby Co. has a one year low of $72.11 and a one year high of $132.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a current ratio of 1.67. The stock has a market cap of $7.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.58, a P/E/G ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 1.17.

Kirby (NYSE:KEX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The shipping company reported $1.55 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.47 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $831.10 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $824.42 million. Kirby had a net margin of 9.37% and a return on equity of 9.43%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.05 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Kirby Co. will post 5.45 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Kirby news, COO Christian G. O’neil sold 14,031 shares of Kirby stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $123.29, for a total value of $1,729,881.99. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 12,746 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,571,454.34. The trade was a 52.40 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO David W. Grzebinski sold 26,358 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $120.46, for a total value of $3,175,084.68. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 63,399 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,637,043.54. This represents a 29.37 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 60,596 shares of company stock valued at $7,515,760. Company insiders own 1.50% of the company’s stock.

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.