KE Holdings Inc. (NYSE:BEKE) Given Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of KE Holdings Inc. (NYSE:BEKE) have been given an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the five brokerages that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation and four have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 1 year target price among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $27.26.

Several research analysts recently commented on BEKE shares. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “buy” rating on shares of KE in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th. UBS Group lowered KE from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $22.70 to $24.50 in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their price target on KE from $19.00 to $27.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 19th.

KE Stock Up 1.5 %

NYSE BEKE traded up $0.32 on Wednesday, reaching $20.70. The stock had a trading volume of 4,854,298 shares, compared to its average volume of 9,925,522. KE has a 12-month low of $12.48 and a 12-month high of $26.05. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $20.14 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $19.61. The firm has a market capitalization of $25.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.23, a P/E/G ratio of 3.45 and a beta of -0.82.

KE Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a — dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 25th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 9th will be issued a $0.36 dividend. This is an increase from KE’s previous — dividend of $0.17. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 9th. This represents a dividend yield of 1.4%. KE’s payout ratio is presently 64.58%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On KE

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of KE during the 3rd quarter worth $30,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of KE during the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Principal Securities Inc. raised its position in shares of KE by 411.9% during the 4th quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 2,068 shares of the company’s stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 1,664 shares during the last quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. lifted its stake in KE by 42.3% in the 4th quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 4,762 shares of the company’s stock valued at $88,000 after buying an additional 1,416 shares in the last quarter. Finally, State of Wyoming purchased a new position in KE during the fourth quarter worth $100,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 39.34% of the company’s stock.

About KE

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.