KEX vs INSW Stock Comparison

Kirby and International Seaways Prices as of Oct 26, 2026 Peers: Industry group
KEX Kirby Corp
$134.74 +4.5% 1M +55.1% 1Y
Market cap
$7.28B
P/E
20.5x
Revenue (TTM)
$3.49B
Div. yield
–
Marine Shipping Industrials
2 wins

Head to Head

11 decided of 12

International Seaways leads on 9 of the 12 questions below (International Seaways 9, Kirby 2). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionKEXINSWLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $7.28B $5.58B KEX
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 20.5x 7.2x INSW
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 19.6x 6.5x INSW
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +6.6% +57.4% INSW
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 10.2% 62.0% INSW
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 8.3% 28.3% INSW
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 1.3x 0.2x INSW
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.00% 0.00% –
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months +55.1% +135.6% INSW
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years +19.4%/yr +45.7%/yr INSW
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 29.0% 40.1% KEX
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 64/100 82/100 INSW

Percentile Scorecard

KEXINSW

Each axis is the mean percentile of its metrics against the company's industry group. 100 is the best in the group, 50 the middle.

Scores by Axis

AxisKEXINSW
Valuation 42 #80 of 136 47 #73 of 136
Growth 79 #26 of 122 81 #24 of 122
Profitability 53 #55 of 116 98 #3 of 116
Financial Health 64 #52 of 144 90 #15 of 144
Shareholder Returns 80 #17 of 82 95 #5 of 82
Overall 64 82
  • KEX ranked among 150 companies in Transportation
  • INSW ranked among 150 companies in Transportation

Price Performance

Price return, split-adjusted, before dividends. Click a name to hide or show it.

Returns

PeriodKEXINSWSPY
1 month +4.5%+7.7% -0.8%
3 months -7.1%+25.4% +3.5%
6 months -11.6%+41.1% +7.0%
Year to date +22.3%+134.2% +12.2%
1 year +55.1%+135.6% +13.0%
3 years +80.4%+131.0% +86.3%
3 years, per year +21.7%+32.2% +23.1%
5 years +142.3%+556.8% +68.6%
5 years, per year +19.4%+45.7% +11.0%
10 years +142.1%— +258.0%
10 years, per year +9.2%— +13.6%

Risk

MeasureKEXINSWSPY
Volatility, 1Y 29.0%40.1% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 27.1%37.5% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 0.550.31 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y 1.903.38 1.02
Max drawdown, 5Y -38.8%-55.8% -25.4%
From 52-week high -11.7%-9.0% -1.8%
52-week high $152.59$125.00 $779.14
52-week low $88.64$46.81 $631.97

Valuation History

Weekly multiples on trailing twelve-month fundamentals. Negative or extreme readings (a loss year, a collapsed denominator) are left out so the chart stays readable.

MultipleKEXINSW
P/E now vs peer median 20.2xmedian 16.1x 7.2xmedian 16.1x
P/S now vs peer median 2.0xmedian 1.0x 4.5xmedian 1.0x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 10.6xmedian 8.7x 6.0xmedian 8.7x
P/FCF now vs peer median 15.0xmedian 11.5x 20.9xmedian 11.5x
P/B now vs peer median 2.1xmedian 1.2x 2.5xmedian 1.2x
PEG now vs peer median 0.64median 0.81 1.32median 0.81

Financial History

Reported figures by fiscal period, placed on the calendar year (or quarter) each period ended in, so companies with different fiscal years line up.

Trailing twelve monthsKEXINSW
Revenue $3.49B $1.26B
Gross profit $1.16B –
Operating income $488.92M $806.76M
Net income $355.89M $779.12M
Free cash flow $475.58M $269.32M
EPS (diluted) $6.62 $15.62
Cash & equivalents $38.96M $159.40M
Total debt $1.04B $645.62M
Shares (diluted) 53.70M 49.86M
Enterprise value $7.06B $4.21B

All Metrics

58 metrics · best in bold

Bold marks the best reading: the lowest positive value for multiples, leverage and payout, the highest for everything else. The bar under each value is its percentile against that company's own peers. Hover a value for its rank and the peer median.

Valuation

12 metrics
MetricKEXINSW
P/E 20.2x 7.2x
P/FCF 15.0x 20.9x
P/Operating cash flow 10.0x 8.9x
P/S 2.0x 4.5x
P/B 2.1x 2.5x
P/Tangible book 2.1x 2.5x
EV/EBITDA 10.6x 6.0x
EV/EBIT 16.6x 7.3x
EV/Revenue 2.3x 4.7x
EV/FCF 17.1x 21.8x
EV/Operating cash flow 11.4x 9.3x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 0.64 1.32

Growth

14 metrics
MetricKEXINSW
Revenue growth (1Y) 6.6% 57.4%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 5.1% 2.9%
Gross profit growth (1Y) 5.0% –
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) 11.8% –
Operating income growth (1Y) 18.0% 193.8%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) 22.6% 4.1%
Net income growth (1Y) 17.2% 226.4%
Net income CAGR (3Y) 26.8% 5.8%
EPS growth (1Y) 23.2% 223.8%
EPS CAGR (3Y) 31.6% 5.5%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 21.4% 67.3%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) 18.5% -2.7%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) 82.1% 34.3%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) 43.3% -14.9%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricKEXINSW
Gross margin 33.2% –
EBITDA margin 21.8% 77.6%
Operating margin 14.0% 64.2%
Pretax margin 13.5% 61.4%
Net margin 10.2% 62.0%
FCF margin 13.6% 21.4%
Operating cash flow margin 20.3% 50.4%
Return on equity 10.4% 34.6%
Return on assets 5.8% 26.2%
Return on invested capital 8.3% 28.3%
Return on capital employed 9.0% 28.7%
Asset turnover 0.6x 0.4x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 2.0x 0.8x
Stock comp / revenue 0.5% 0.6%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricKEXINSW
Debt / assets 16.7% 21.4%
Debt / equity 0.3x 0.3x
Net debt / EBITDA 1.3x 0.2x
Debt / FCF 2.2x 2.4x
Liabilities / assets 44.6% 25.0%
Equity / assets 55.4% 75.0%
Interest coverage 11.0x 19.7x
Current ratio 1.7x 5.9x
Quick ratio 1.0x 7.3x
Cash ratio 0.1x 3.1x
Altman Z-score 3.24 6.40

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricKEXINSW
Dividend yield – 7.1%
Net buyback yield 4.6% –
Shareholder yield 4.6% 7.1%
Payout ratio (earnings) – –
Payout ratio (FCF) – –
Dividend growth (1Y) – –
Dividend CAGR (3Y) – –

Analyst Estimates

Solid lines are reported fiscal-year results; dashed lines are the consensus for the years ahead. Hover a year for the analysts' high and low, and how each result compared with its estimate.

ConsensusKEXINSW
Forward P/E 19.6xFY2026 6.5xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $6.86FY2026 $17.52FY2026
EPS growth, next FY +8.4%FY2026 +223.2%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after +29.0% -35.2%
Revenue, next fiscal year $3.49BFY2026 $1.35BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +4.0%FY2026 +64.2%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +4.7% -10.4%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersKEXINSW
Held by institutions 99.6% 81.7%
Institutions holding 464 364
Change in shares held, QoQ -0.1% +5.2%
Institutions buying 252 228
Institutions selling 145 86
Buyers to sellers 1.74 2.65

Return Correlation

Daily returns, last 12 months

1.00 means two stocks move in lockstep, 0 that they move independently. Pairs below about 0.5 diversify each other.

KEXINSW
KEX 1.00 0.18
INSW 0.18 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, KEX and INSW?

Kirby (KEX) is the largest by market capitalisation: Kirby (KEX) $7.28B, International Seaways (INSW) $5.58B.

Which stock is cheaper, KEX and INSW?

International Seaways (INSW) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Kirby (KEX) 20.5x, International Seaways (INSW) 7.2x). On next year's consensus earnings, International Seaways (INSW) is cheapest (Kirby (KEX) 19.6x, International Seaways (INSW) 6.5x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

International Seaways (INSW) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Kirby (KEX) +6.6%, International Seaways (INSW) +57.4%.

Which company is more profitable?

International Seaways (INSW) has the highest net margin (Kirby (KEX) 10.2%, International Seaways (INSW) 62.0%). On return on invested capital, International Seaways (INSW) leads (Kirby (KEX) 8.3%, International Seaways (INSW) 28.3%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year International Seaways (INSW) returned the most: Kirby (KEX) +55.1%, International Seaways (INSW) +135.6%. Over five years, International Seaways (INSW) compounded fastest (Kirby (KEX) +19.4%/yr, International Seaways (INSW) +45.7%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Kirby (KEX) has been the steadiest (Kirby (KEX) 29.0%, International Seaways (INSW) 40.1%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Do KEX and INSW move together?

Their daily returns over the past year have a correlation of 0.18, a weak relationship. Holding both diversifies more than two closely linked stocks would.

Which is the better stock, KEX and INSW?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, International Seaways (INSW) leads on 9. Business Quant does not give investment advice; use the comparison as a starting point for your own research.

Data from SEC filings, exchange prices and consensus estimates, via Business Quant. Percentile scores compare each company with its own peer group, so two companies' scores are each relative to different peers unless you rank against the whole market. Price returns exclude dividends. Nothing on this page is investment advice.