10,792 Shares in Kirby Co. (NYSE:KEX) Acquired by Entropy Technologies LP

Entropy Technologies LP acquired a new stake in shares of Kirby Co. (NYSE:KEX) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 10,792 shares of the shipping company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,142,000.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Kirby by 420.0% in the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 208 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 168 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC bought a new stake in shares of Kirby during the 4th quarter worth $25,000. ORG Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Kirby in the third quarter valued at about $30,000. Brooklyn Investment Group bought a new position in Kirby in the third quarter valued at about $42,000. Finally, Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new position in Kirby during the third quarter worth about $52,000. 96.15% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Kirby Stock Performance

NYSE:KEX opened at $107.81 on Tuesday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $109.89 and its 200-day moving average is $117.14. Kirby Co. has a 1-year low of $83.24 and a 1-year high of $132.21. The company has a current ratio of 1.67, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The stock has a market cap of $6.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.89 and a beta of 1.19.

Kirby (NYSE:KEX) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The shipping company reported $1.29 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.30 by ($0.01). Kirby had a return on equity of 9.78% and a net margin of 8.78%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Kirby Co. will post 6.54 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Richard Ross Stewart sold 8,000 shares of Kirby stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $128.21, for a total value of $1,025,680.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 15,488 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,985,716.48. The trade was a 34.06 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, VP Scott P. Miller sold 1,244 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $107.61, for a total transaction of $133,866.84. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 5,545 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $596,697.45. This represents a 18.32 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on KEX shares. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Kirby from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 9th. Stifel Nicolaus cut their target price on shares of Kirby from $136.00 to $135.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $129.25.

About Kirby

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.