KE Sees Unusually High Options Volume (NYSE:BEKE)

KE Holdings Inc. (NYSE:BEKE - Get Free Report) was the recipient of unusually large options trading activity on Monday. Investors acquired 36,331 call options on the company. This represents an increase of 144% compared to the typical volume of 14,864 call options.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

BEKE has been the topic of several recent research reports. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of KE in a report on Tuesday, March 18th. UBS Group lowered KE from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and boosted their target price for the company from $22.70 to $24.50 in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price target on KE from $19.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 19th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $27.26.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On KE

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. FIL Ltd raised its holdings in shares of KE by 21.1% during the fourth quarter. FIL Ltd now owns 25,847,478 shares of the company's stock valued at $476,111,000 after acquiring an additional 4,503,902 shares in the last quarter. Hhlr Advisors LTD. raised its holdings in KE by 3.6% in the 4th quarter. Hhlr Advisors LTD. now owns 11,261,276 shares of the company's stock worth $207,433,000 after purchasing an additional 392,588 shares in the last quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board lifted its position in shares of KE by 111,822,650.0% in the 4th quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 11,182,275 shares of the company's stock worth $205,978,000 after purchasing an additional 11,182,265 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC boosted its stake in shares of KE by 2.4% during the 4th quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 8,155,694 shares of the company's stock valued at $150,228,000 after purchasing an additional 194,800 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of KE during the fourth quarter valued at about $130,167,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 39.34% of the company's stock.

Remove Ads

KE Stock Up 2.1 %

Shares of NYSE:BEKE traded up $0.38 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $18.46. 12,414,874 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 9,831,844. The business's 50 day moving average is $20.82 and its two-hundred day moving average is $20.04. The stock has a market capitalization of $22.30 billion, a PE ratio of 37.67, a P/E/G ratio of 3.45 and a beta of -0.73. KE has a one year low of $12.49 and a one year high of $26.05.

KE Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a -- dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 25th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 9th will be given a dividend of $0.36 per share. This is a positive change from KE's previous -- dividend of $0.17. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 9th. This represents a yield of 1.4%. KE's dividend payout ratio is presently 64.58%.

KE Company Profile

KE Holdings Inc, through its subsidiaries, engages in operating an integrated online and offline platform for housing transactions and services in the People's Republic of China. It operates through four segments: Existing Home Transaction Services, New Home Transaction Services, Home Renovation and Furnishing, and Emerging and Other Services.