VELA Investment Management LLC Acquires 7,992 Shares of Kirby Co. (NYSE:KEX)

VELA Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Kirby Co. (NYSE:KEX) by 6.8% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 125,199 shares of the shipping company’s stock after buying an additional 7,992 shares during the period. Kirby makes up approximately 3.7% of VELA Investment Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its largest position. VELA Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Kirby were worth $13,246,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Quest Partners LLC raised its position in Kirby by 0.7% during the third quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 12,462 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $1,526,000 after buying an additional 89 shares during the period. Americana Partners LLC raised its position in Kirby by 2.1% during the third quarter. Americana Partners LLC now owns 4,900 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $600,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the period. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC raised its position in Kirby by 1.3% during the fourth quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 8,459 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $895,000 after buying an additional 108 shares during the period. Huntington National Bank raised its position in Kirby by 8.5% during the third quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 1,668 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $204,000 after buying an additional 130 shares during the period. Finally, Creative Planning raised its position in Kirby by 2.2% during the third quarter. Creative Planning now owns 6,683 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $818,000 after buying an additional 147 shares during the period. 96.15% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Kirby Stock Up 0.2 %

KEX opened at $102.31 on Friday. Kirby Co. has a fifty-two week low of $86.02 and a fifty-two week high of $132.21. The business has a 50-day moving average of $106.88 and a 200-day moving average of $116.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a current ratio of 1.45 and a quick ratio of 1.05. The company has a market capitalization of $5.84 billion, a PE ratio of 20.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.88 and a beta of 1.19.

Kirby (NYSE:KEX) last posted its quarterly 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 9.71% and a net margin of 8.78%. Equities research analysts forecast that Kirby Co. will post 6.57 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

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

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Scott P. Miller sold 1,244 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $596,697.45. This represents a 18.32 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 1.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.