Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC Purchases 245 Shares of Kirby Co. (NYSE:KEX)

Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC boosted its position in shares of Kirby Co. (NYSE:KEX) by 1.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 20,191 shares of the shipping company’s stock after buying an additional 245 shares during the period. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC’s holdings in Kirby were worth $2,136,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its position in shares of Kirby by 27.5% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 142,265 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $17,418,000 after acquiring an additional 30,713 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its stake in Kirby by 2.6% during the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 415,042 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $43,911,000 after purchasing an additional 10,486 shares in the last quarter. Artemis Investment Management LLP grew its stake in shares of Kirby by 112.0% in the 4th quarter. Artemis Investment Management LLP now owns 382,835 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $40,504,000 after buying an additional 202,272 shares in the last quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Kirby by 24.3% in the 4th quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 29,659 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $3,143,000 after buying an additional 5,804 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Kirby in the 4th quarter worth about $18,749,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.15% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Kirby news, VP Scott P. Miller sold 1,244 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $107.61, for a total value of $133,866.84. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 5,545 shares in the company, valued at $596,697.45. This represents a 18.32 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.90% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently commented on KEX shares. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price target on Kirby from $136.00 to $135.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. StockNews.com cut Kirby from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, January 9th. Finally, Bank of America decreased their price target on Kirby from $133.00 to $123.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, March 28th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $124.75.

Kirby Stock Up 0.7 %

Shares of NYSE:KEX opened at $101.73 on Wednesday. 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 business has a 50 day simple moving average of $103.71 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $113.39. Kirby Co. has a 1 year low of $93.63 and a 1 year high of $132.21. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.79 billion, a PE ratio of 20.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.88 and a beta of 1.18.

Kirby (NYSE:KEX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The shipping company reported $1.29 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.30 by ($0.01). Kirby had a net margin of 8.78% and a return on equity of 9.71%. On average, equities analysts predict that Kirby Co. will post 6.57 EPS for the current year.

Kirby 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.