Assenagon Asset Management S.A. Boosts Stock Holdings in Kirby Co. (NYSE:KEX)

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its position in Kirby Co. (NYSE:KEX) by 32.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 184,061 shares of the shipping company’s stock after purchasing an additional 44,959 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. owned about 0.32% of Kirby worth $19,474,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in KEX. Quest Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Kirby by 0.7% in the 3rd 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 lifted its holdings in Kirby by 2.1% in the third quarter. Americana Partners LLC now owns 4,900 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $600,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the period. Huntington National Bank boosted its position in shares of Kirby by 8.5% during the 3rd quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 1,668 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $204,000 after purchasing an additional 130 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Kirby by 3.1% during the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC now owns 4,372 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $523,000 after purchasing an additional 133 shares during the period. Finally, Creative Planning increased its holdings in shares of Kirby by 2.2% in the 3rd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 6,683 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $818,000 after purchasing an additional 147 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.15% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Kirby

In other Kirby news, Director Richard Ross Stewart sold 8,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 20th. The shares were 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 in the company, valued at approximately $1,985,716.48. This represents a 34.06 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, COO Christian G. O’neil sold 15,041 shares of Kirby stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $130.00, for a total transaction of $1,955,330.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 7,746 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,006,980. This trade represents a 66.01 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 25,354 shares of company stock valued at $3,275,455. 1.40% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Kirby Trading Up 0.4 %

NYSE:KEX opened at $111.91 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $6.42 billion, a PE ratio of 21.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.52 and a beta of 1.21. Kirby Co. has a 52-week low of $76.12 and a 52-week high of $132.21. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $115.90 and a 200-day simple moving average of $118.64. The company has a quick ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 1.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29.

Kirby (NYSE:KEX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The shipping company reported $1.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.47 by $0.08. Kirby had a net margin of 9.37% and a return on equity of 9.43%. The company had revenue of $831.10 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $824.42 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.05 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts expect that Kirby Co. will post 5.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, StockNews.com lowered shares of Kirby from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $123.80.

Kirby Company Profile

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.