Bank of America Issues Positive Forecast for Kirby (NYSE:KEX) Stock Price

Kirby (NYSE:KEX) had its price objective hoisted by Bank of America from $169.00 to $182.00 in a research note released on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. Bank of America currently has a buy rating on the shipping company’s stock.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently issued reports on KEX. BTIG Research upped their target price on Kirby from $160.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Kirby from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, March 13th. Weiss Ratings downgraded Kirby from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 1st. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Kirby from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, June 13th. Finally, Evercore restated an “outperform” rating and set a $158.00 price target on shares of Kirby in a report on Friday, May 1st. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $161.20.

Kirby Stock Performance

NYSE KEX opened at $141.23 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 1.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. Kirby has a 12-month low of $79.51 and a 12-month high of $157.69. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $141.75 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $133.01. The company has a market capitalization of $7.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.73, a P/E/G ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 0.83.

Kirby (NYSE:KEX) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The shipping company reported $1.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.41 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $844.10 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $832.57 million. Kirby had a return on equity of 10.62% and a net margin of 10.51%.Kirby’s quarterly revenue was up 7.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.33 EPS. Kirby has set its FY 2026 guidance at 6.650-7.280 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Kirby will post 6.99 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Kirby

In other Kirby news, VP Ronald A. Dragg sold 1,726 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, May 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $145.01, for a total transaction of $250,287.26. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president directly owned 8,673 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,257,671.73. This represents a 16.60% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, VP William Matthew Woodruff sold 678 shares of Kirby stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $147.37, for a total transaction of $99,916.86. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president owned 9 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,326.33. The trade was a 98.69% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 17,691 shares of company stock valued at $2,579,036 in the last three months. 0.80% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Kirby

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in KEX. Maseco LLP purchased a new stake in Kirby during the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. Rothschild Investment LLC increased its stake in Kirby by 2,600.0% in the 4th quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC now owns 270 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 260 shares during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its position in Kirby by 537.5% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 306 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 258 shares during the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC lifted its position in Kirby by 50.0% in the fourth quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 402 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 134 shares during the last quarter. Finally, FNY Investment Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Kirby during the third quarter valued at approximately $56,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.15% of the company’s stock.

About Kirby

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.