KEX
Kirby Corporation
KEX has lower modeled downside risk, despite its lower overall score.
VRT
Vertiv Holdings Co
VRT has the edge over KEX overall, supported by stronger valuation and stronger fundamentals.
KEX Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Healthy | |
| Healthy | |
| Healthy | |
| Healthy |
KEX's revenue, profitability, cash flow and balance sheet are all currently healthy.
VRT Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Strong | |
| Strong | |
| Strong | |
| Strong |
VRT's revenue, profitability, cash flow and balance sheet are all currently strong.
KEX PE Valuation
| Level | PE | Price | Vs current |
|---|---|---|---|
| Forward | 15x | $129 | — |
| Current | 19x | $129 | — |
| Cheap | 20x | $142 | +11% |
| Fair | 24x | $168 | +30% |
| Expensive | 41x | $286 | +122% |
Historical ranges are pointers, not guarantees.
KEX's PE is in its cheap range at 19x. If earnings grow as analysts expect, today's price would be 15x next year's earnings.
VRT PE Valuation
| Level | PE | Price | Vs current |
|---|---|---|---|
| Forward | 23x | $210 | — |
| Current | 39x | $210 | — |
| Cheap | 58x | $308 | +47% |
| Fair | 72x | $383 | +83% |
| Expensive | 88x | $472 | +125% |
Historical ranges are pointers, not guarantees.
VRT has the edge over KEX in the historical PE scenario, which offers more potential upside but is not a forecast.
KEX Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| Improving | |
| Strong growth | |
| Growth | |
| Improving | |
| Limited | |
| High |
Analysts expect earnings and revenue growth for KEX, with profitability improving.
VRT Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| Strongly improving | |
| Strong growth | |
| Strong growth | |
| Strongly improving | |
| Moderate | |
| Moderate |
Analysts expect strong earnings and revenue growth for VRT, with profitability improving.
KEX Earnings Per Share
| Quarter | TTM EPS | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Forward | $8.31 | +20% |
| Q3 2026 | $6.94 | +29% |
| Q2 2026 | $6.50 | +23% |
| Q1 2026 | $6.50 | +29% |
| Q4 2025 | $6.33 | +29% |
| Q3 2025 | $5.39 | +3.5% |
| Q2 2025 | $5.29 | +12% |
| Q1 2025 | $5.05 | +19% |
| Q4 2024 | $4.91 | +32% |
KEX's earnings per share have climbed steadily: $6.94 over the past year, up 29% from the year before, and higher year over year for 17 quarters in a row.
VRT Earnings Per Share
| Quarter | TTM EPS | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Forward | $9.14 | +71% |
| Q3 2026 | $5.35 | +102% |
| Q2 2026 | $4.42 | +111% |
| Q1 2026 | $3.98 | +131% |
| Q4 2025 | $3.41 | +166% |
| Q3 2025 | $2.65 | +75% |
| Q2 2025 | $2.09 | +62% |
| Q1 2025 | $1.72 | +64% |
| Q4 2024 | $1.28 | +7.6% |
VRT has the edge over KEX on earnings, with stronger typical year-over-year growth.
KEX Quarterly Revenue
| Quarter | Revenue | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $977.2M | +12% |
| Q2 2026 | $922.4M | +7.8% |
| Q1 2026 | $844.1M | +7.4% |
| Q4 2025 | $851.8M | +6.2% |
| Q3 2025 | $871.2M | +4.8% |
| Q2 2025 | $855.5M | +3.8% |
| Q1 2025 | $785.7M | -2.8% |
| Q4 2024 | $802.3M | +0.4% |
KEX's revenue has grown year over year for six quarters in a row: $977M last quarter, up 12% from the same quarter a year ago.
| Quarter | Margin | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 15% | +0.6 points |
| Q2 2026 | 13% | -2.1 points |
| Q1 2026 | 13% | -0.7 points |
| Q4 2025 | 15% | +9 points |
| Q3 2025 | 15% | -0.4 points |
| Q2 2025 | 15% | +0.8 points |
| Q1 2025 | 13% | +0.9 points |
| Q4 2024 | 6.3% | -5.4 points |
KEX's operating margin was 15% last quarter, up 0.6 points from the same quarter a year ago, near the top of its range since 2019.
VRT Quarterly Revenue
| Quarter | Revenue | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $4.3B | +61% |
| Q2 2026 | $3.3B | +24% |
| Q1 2026 | $2.6B | +30% |
| Q4 2025 | $2.9B | +23% |
| Q3 2025 | $2.7B | +29% |
| Q2 2025 | $2.6B | +35% |
| Q1 2025 | $2B | +24% |
| Q4 2024 | $2.3B | +26% |
VRT has the edge over KEX on sales, with more consistent year-over-year improvement.
| Quarter | Margin | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 23% | +3.5 points |
| Q2 2026 | 19% | +2.7 points |
| Q1 2026 | 17% | +2.3 points |
| Q4 2025 | 20% | +0.7 points |
| Q3 2025 | 19% | +1.4 points |
| Q2 2025 | 17% | -0.4 points |
| Q1 2025 | 14% | +1.9 points |
| Q4 2024 | 19% | +4.2 points |
VRT has the edge over KEX on profitability, with a higher operating margin.
KEX Free Cash Flow
| Quarter | Free cash flow | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $73.9M | -54% |
| Q2 2026 | $758K | -97% |
| Q1 2026 | $49.4M | +$91.5M |
| Q4 2025 | $265.2M | +76% |
| Q3 2025 | $160.3M | +23% |
| Q2 2025 | $22.4M | -75% |
| Q1 2025 | -$42.1M | -200% |
| Q4 2024 | $150.7M | +69% |
KEX generated $389M in free cash flow over the past year, up 34% from the year before.
VRT Free Cash Flow
| Quarter | Free cash flow | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $654.9M | +41% |
| Q2 2026 | $926.5M | +233% |
| Q1 2026 | $654.2M | +145% |
| Q4 2025 | $885.6M | +143% |
| Q3 2025 | $463.5M | +36% |
| Q2 2025 | $277.9M | -19% |
| Q1 2025 | $266.8M | +162% |
| Q4 2024 | $364.5M | +18% |
VRT has the edge over KEX on cash flow, with more consistent year-over-year improvement.
KEX Total Shares
| Period | Change % | Net change |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterly | -1.3% | -677K shares |
| 1 year | -5.3% | -3M shares |
| 3 years | -11% | -6.7M shares |
| 5 years | -11% | -6.9M shares |
KEX has the edge over VRT on shareholder dilution, with a more favorable share count trend.
| Quarter | Spent |
|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $111.9M |
| Q2 2026 | $59.7M |
| Q1 2026 | $52.7M |
| Q4 2025 | $101.6M |
| Q3 2025 | $120M |
| Q2 2025 | $31.2M |
| Q1 2025 | $101.5M |
| Q4 2024 | $33.3M |
KEX spent $326M buying back its own shares over the past year, up 14% from the year before.
VRT Total Shares
| Period | Change % | Net change |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterly | 0% | -64.9K shares |
| 1 year | +0.4% | +1.8M shares |
| 3 years | +1.1% | +4.4M shares |
| 5 years | +10% | +36M shares |
| Available history | +63% | +152M shares |
VRT has 393M diluted shares, about the same as a year ago.
| Quarter | Spent |
|---|---|
| Q4 2025 | — |
| Q3 2025 | — |
| Q2 2025 | — |
| Q1 2025 | — |
| Q4 2024 | — |
| Q3 2024 | — |
| Q2 2024 | — |
| Q1 2024 | $599.9M |
KEX Net Leverage
| Quarter | Net Leverage | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 1.3x | Healthy |
| Q2 2026 | 1.3x | Healthy |
| Q1 2026 | 1.2x | Healthy |
| Q4 2025 | 1.1x | Healthy |
| Q3 2025 | 1.5x | Healthy |
| Q2 2025 | 1.6x | Healthy |
| Q1 2025 | 1.6x | Healthy |
| Q4 2024 | 1.2x | Healthy |
KEX's net debt is about 1.3 years of its operating earnings (EBITDA), down from 1.5 years a year ago.
VRT Net Leverage
| Quarter | Net Leverage | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | -0.2x | Net Cash |
| Q2 2026 | 0.1x | Very low |
| Q1 2026 | 0.3x | Very low |
| Q4 2025 | 0.6x | Very low |
| Q3 2025 | 0.8x | Very low |
| Q2 2025 | 0.7x | Very low |
| Q1 2025 | 0.8x | Very low |
| Q4 2024 | 1.0x | Healthy |
VRT has the edge over KEX on leverage, with a lower net debt burden relative to earnings.
KEX Weekly Momentum
| Metric | Value | Status |
|---|---|---|
| RSI | 45.9 | Neutral |
| Stochastic | 40.6 | Neutral |
KEX's weekly RSI is 46 (neutral) and its Stochastic is 41 (neutral).
VRT Weekly Momentum
| Metric | Value | Status |
|---|---|---|
| RSI | 43.0 | Neutral |
| Stochastic | 26.4 | Neutral |
VRT's weekly RSI is 43 (neutral) and its Stochastic is 26 (neutral).
KEX PE vs Industrials Sector
| Metric | KEX | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 19x | 24x | 23% below |
| PE % | 6 | 58 | 52 pts below |
KEX has the edge over VRT on valuation relative to its sector.
VRT PE vs Industrials Sector
| Metric | VRT | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 39x | 24x | 63% above |
| PE % | 3 | 58 | 55 pts below |
VRT is trading at 39x earnings, a 63% premium to the Industrials sector's median of 24x.
KEX Weekly Moving Averages
| Moving average | MA price | Relative |
|---|---|---|
| 8 week MA | $133.3 | 3.6% below |
| 20 week MA | $136.6 | 5.9% below |
| 50 week MA | $133.2 | 3.5% below |
| 100 week MA | $117.7 | 9.1% above |
| 200 week MA | $105.2 | 22% above |
KEX has pulled back, but its long-term trend is still up: it's below its 8-, 20- and 50-week averages, but 22% above its 200-week average.
VRT Weekly Moving Averages
| Moving average | MA price | Relative |
|---|---|---|
| 8 week MA | $221.8 | 5.5% below |
| 20 week MA | $254.4 | 18% below |
| 50 week MA | $253.9 | 17% below |
| 100 week MA | $189.1 | 11% above |
| 200 week MA | $123.5 | 70% above |
VRT has pulled back, but its long-term trend is still up: it's below its 8-, 20- and 50-week averages, but 70% above its 200-week average.
KEX Yearly ROI
| Year | Start price | End price | ROI |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $88.5 | $51.4 | -42% |
| 2021 | $51.4 | $59.7 | +16% |
| 2022 | $59.7 | $64.4 | +7.9% |
| 2023 | $64.4 | $78.5 | +22% |
| 2024 | $78.5 | $106.0 | +35% |
| 2025 | $106.0 | $110.9 | +4.6% |
| 2026 YTD | $110.9 | $128.5 | +16% |
KEX has finished higher in five of the last six years. It's up 16% so far in 2026.
VRT Yearly ROI
| Year | Start price | End price | ROI |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $10.9 | $18.9 | +73% |
| 2021 | $18.9 | $24.9 | +31% |
| 2022 | $24.9 | $12.8 | -48% |
| 2023 | $12.8 | $48.0 | +275% |
| 2024 | $48.0 | $115.1 | +140% |
| 2025 | $115.1 | $167.6 | +46% |
| 2026 YTD | $167.6 | $209.6 | +25% |
VRT has the edge over KEX on returns for 2026, with the stronger performance.