Kirby Corporation (NYSE:KEX), might not be a large cap stock, but it received a lot of attention from a substantial price increase on the NYSE over the last few months. As a mid-cap stock with high coverage by analysts, you could assume any recent changes in the company’s outlook is already priced into the stock. However, what if the stock is still a bargain? Let’s examine Kirby’s valuation and outlook in more detail to determine if there’s still a bargain opportunity.

View our latest analysis for Kirby

Is Kirby still cheap?

Good news, investors! Kirby is still a bargain right now. My valuation model shows that the intrinsic value for the stock is $77.70, but it is currently trading at US$51.83 on the share market, meaning that there is still an opportunity to buy now. What’s more interesting is that, Kirby’s share price is quite volatile, which gives us more chances to buy since the share price could sink lower (or rise higher) in the future. This is based on its high beta, which is a good indicator for how much the stock moves relative to the rest of the market.

Can we expect growth from Kirby?

Future outlook is an important aspect when you’re looking at buying a stock, especially if you are an investor looking for growth in your portfolio. Buying a great company with a robust outlook at a cheap price is always a good investment, so let’s also take a look at the company's future expectations. However, with a relatively muted revenue growth of 6.3% expected over the next couple of years, growth doesn’t seem like a key driver for a buy decision for Kirby, at least in the short term.

What this means for you:

Are you a shareholder? Even though growth is relatively muted, since KEX is currently undervalued, it may be a great time to increase your holdings in the stock. However, there are also other factors such as capital structure to consider, which could explain the current undervaluation.

Are you a potential investor? If you’ve been keeping an eye on KEX for a while, now might be the time to enter the stock. Its future outlook isn’t fully reflected in the current share price yet, which means it’s not too late to buy KEX. But before you make any investment decisions, consider other factors such as the track record of its management team, in order to make a well-informed investment decision.

If you'd like to know more about Kirby as a business, it's important to be aware of any risks it's facing. To that end, you should learn about the 3 warning signs we've spotted with Kirby (including 1 which is potentially serious).

If you are no longer interested in Kirby, you can use our free platform to see our list of over 50 other stocks with a high growth potential.

This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.

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