Wells Fargo analyst Michael Webber downgraded Kirby to Underperform ahead of the company's Q2 results on Thursday. The inland barge market is in the "midst of another leg down," Webber tells investors in a research note. He expects Kirby's pricing and utilization to remain under pressure and keeps a $44-$48 price target range for the shares.

As previously reported, Wolfe Research initiated coverage of Kirby with an Outperform rating and $126 price target. Kirby, the largest domestic tank barge operator in the U.S., has outperformed materially over the past year, but the firm sees more upside ahead with visibility to continued barge industry capacity constraints and strong pricing power the next few years, the analyst tells investors. In contrast to over-capacity challenges and pricing headwinds across most other transport sub-sectors right now, the multi-year supply/demand outlook for the barge industry has "arguably never been better," the analyst added.