Kirby Corporation $KEX Shares Bought by BNP Paribas Financial Markets

BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its holdings in shares of Kirby Corporation (NYSE:KEX) by 45.7% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 158,698 shares of the shipping company’s stock after buying an additional 49,764 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets’ holdings in Kirby were worth $17,485,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. State of Wyoming boosted its position in Kirby by 12.8% during the 3rd quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 1,003 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $84,000 after acquiring an additional 114 shares during the period. Fifth Third Bancorp boosted its position in Kirby by 18.2% during the 4th quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 739 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $81,000 after acquiring an additional 114 shares during the period. Xponance Inc. raised its stake in shares of Kirby by 1.8% in the 3rd quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 6,809 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $568,000 after buying an additional 118 shares in the last quarter. Procyon Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Kirby by 4.6% in the 4th quarter. Procyon Advisors LLC now owns 2,733 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $301,000 after buying an additional 121 shares in the last quarter. Finally, M&T Bank Corp raised its stake in shares of Kirby by 2.5% in the 4th quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 5,179 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $571,000 after buying an additional 125 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.15% of the company’s stock.

Kirby Stock Performance

Shares of KEX stock opened at $141.09 on Friday. Kirby Corporation has a 1-year low of $79.51 and a 1-year high of $157.69. The company has a current ratio of 1.59, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The company has a market capitalization of $7.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.71, a P/E/G ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 0.81. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $143.14 and its 200-day simple moving average is $128.48.

Kirby (NYSE:KEX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The shipping company reported $1.50 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.41 by $0.09. Kirby had a return on equity of 10.62% and a net margin of 10.51%.The business had revenue of $844.10 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $832.57 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.33 earnings per share. Kirby’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Kirby has set its FY 2026 guidance at 6.650-7.280 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Kirby Corporation will post 6.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Amy D. Husted sold 4,000 shares of Kirby stock in a transaction on Friday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $145.43, for a total transaction of $581,720.00. Following the transaction, the vice president owned 10,814 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,572,680.02. The trade was a 27.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, COO Christian G. O’neil sold 11,287 shares of Kirby stock in a transaction on Friday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $145.93, for a total value of $1,647,111.91. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 17,691 shares of company stock worth $2,579,036. 0.80% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently commented on KEX shares. Weiss Ratings raised Kirby from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Friday, May 29th. Evercore reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $158.00 price objective on shares of Kirby in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Zacks Research raised Kirby from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, March 13th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Kirby from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 23rd. Finally, BTIG Research boosted their price objective on Kirby from $160.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Kirby currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $146.20.

Kirby Profile

Kirby Corporation is a leading domestic maritime transporter of bulk liquid products in the United States. Through its Marine Transportation segment, the company operates one of North America’s largest fleets of inland tank barges and towing vessels. Kirby’s fleet moves petrochemicals, black oil, refined petroleum products and agricultural chemicals along coastal and inland waterways, providing critical logistical support to energy, chemical and agricultural producers.

In addition to its marine operations, Kirby’s Distribution and Services segment offers diesel engine and power generation services, along with aftermarket parts sales.