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

Shares of KE Holdings Inc. (NYSE:BEKE) have earned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the six brokerages that are covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation and five have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price objective among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $27.26.

BEKE has been the subject of several research reports. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of KE from $19.00 to $27.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 19th. UBS Group downgraded shares of KE from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $22.70 to $24.50 in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “buy” rating on shares of KE in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On KE

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec acquired a new position in KE in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $1,565,000. Quantitative Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in KE in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $327,000. Axiom Investors LLC DE acquired a new position in KE in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $25,547,000. APG Asset Management N.V. increased its position in KE by 1.4% in the 1st quarter. APG Asset Management N.V. now owns 1,376,966 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,609,000 after acquiring an additional 19,600 shares during the period. Finally, BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp increased its position in shares of KE by 8.9% during the first quarter. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp now owns 271,950 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,463,000 after buying an additional 22,200 shares during the period. 39.34% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

KE Price Performance

BEKE stock opened at $20.15 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $24.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.12, a P/E/G ratio of 3.45 and a beta of -0.73. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $20.46 and a 200 day simple moving average of $19.79. KE has a 1 year low of $12.92 and a 1 year high of $26.05.

KE Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a — dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 25th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 9th were given a $0.36 dividend. This is a boost from KE’s previous — dividend of $0.17. This represents a yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, April 9th. KE’s dividend payout ratio is 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.