Kirby Corporation $KEX Shares Acquired by Assenagon Asset Management S.A.

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its holdings in shares of Kirby Corporation (NYSE:KEX) by 30.9% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 281,505 shares of the shipping company’s stock after buying an additional 66,526 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A.’s holdings in Kirby were worth $37,406,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in KEX. Fifth Third Bancorp raised its stake in shares of Kirby by 18.2% in the fourth quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 739 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $81,000 after acquiring an additional 114 shares in the last quarter. Xponance Inc. grew its stake in Kirby by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 6,809 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $568,000 after purchasing an additional 118 shares in the last quarter. Procyon Advisors LLC grew its stake in Kirby by 4.6% during the 4th quarter. Procyon Advisors LLC now owns 2,733 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $301,000 after purchasing an additional 121 shares in the last quarter. M&T Bank Corp increased its holdings in Kirby by 2.5% during the 4th quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 5,179 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $571,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares during the period. Finally, Parallel Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Kirby by 50.0% during the 4th quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 402 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $44,000 after purchasing an additional 134 shares during the period. 96.15% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Kirby Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:KEX opened at $136.76 on Friday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $143.81 and a 200-day simple moving average of $131.59. Kirby Corporation has a one year low of $79.51 and a one year high of $157.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a current ratio of 1.59. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.04, a PEG ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.81.

Kirby (NYSE:KEX) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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 net margin of 10.51% and a return on equity of 10.62%. The firm had revenue of $844.10 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $832.57 million. Kirby’s quarterly revenue was up 7.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.33 EPS. Kirby has set its FY 2026 guidance at 6.650-7.280 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Kirby Corporation will post 6.99 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on KEX shares. Zacks Research upgraded Kirby from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, March 13th. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Kirby from $147.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 9th. Evercore reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $158.00 price target on shares of Kirby in a research note on Friday, May 1st. BTIG Research boosted their price target on shares of Kirby from $160.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of Kirby from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Friday, May 29th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $146.20.

Insider Activity at Kirby

In other Kirby news, VP Ronald A. Dragg sold 1,726 shares of the business’s 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 sale, the vice president directly owned 8,673 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,257,671.73. The trade was a 16.60% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, VP William Matthew Woodruff sold 678 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $147.37, for a total value of $99,916.86. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president directly owned 9 shares in the company, valued at $1,326.33. This trade represents a 98.69% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 17,691 shares of company stock valued at $2,579,036 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.80% of the company’s stock.

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.