KE (NYSE:BEKE) Stock Sees Unusually High Call Option Buying

KE Holdings Inc. Sponsored ADR (NYSE:BEKE – Get Free Report) was the target of some unusual options trading activity on Wednesday. Stock investors purchased 3,841 call options on the company. This represents an increase of approximately 61% compared to the average volume of 2,389 call options.

KE Stock Performance

NYSE BEKE traded up $0.32 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $16.91. 4,427,402 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,581,614. KE has a 1 year low of $13.81 and a 1 year high of $19.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a quick ratio of 3.30 and a current ratio of 3.30. The company has a market capitalization of $18.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.73, a P/E/G ratio of 0.55 and a beta of -0.26. The business’s 50 day moving average is $17.00 and its 200-day moving average is $16.51.

KE (NYSE:BEKE – Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, August 21st. The company reported $0.42 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.31 by $0.11. The business had revenue of $3.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.59 billion. KE had a return on equity of 7.62% and a net margin of 5.38%. On average, equities research analysts forecast that KE will post 1.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other KE news, Director Yigang Shan sold 3,326,670 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $5.44, for a total value of $18,097,084.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 53,868,189 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $293,042,948.16. This trade represents a 5.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Yongdong Peng sold 16,033,983 shares of KE stock in a transaction on Friday, September 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $5.27, for a total transaction of $84,499,090.41. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 62,824,251 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $331,083,802.77. The trade was a 20.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Corporate insiders own 6.80% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On KE

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its holdings in KE by 16.0% in the 2nd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 8,915,061 shares of the company’s stock valued at $129,536,000 after acquiring an additional 1,231,445 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of KE during the 4th quarter worth about $112,843,000. Baird Financial Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of KE by 5.8% in the 2nd quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 5,942,507 shares of the company’s stock worth $86,345,000 after acquiring an additional 324,707 shares during the last quarter. Temasek Holdings Private Ltd grew its stake in shares of KE by 40.7% in the fourth quarter. Temasek Holdings Private Ltd now owns 3,047,357 shares of the company’s stock valued at $48,026,000 after buying an additional 881,506 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Perseverance Asset Management International grew its position in KE by 20.4% in the 1st quarter. Perseverance Asset Management International now owns 1,391,439 shares of the company’s stock valued at $20,830,000 after acquiring an additional 236,000 shares in the last quarter. 39.34% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

BEKE has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of KE in a research note on Monday, September 21st. Zacks Research upgraded KE from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 26th. CLSA began coverage on KE in a report on Wednesday, August 19th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $23.80 target price for the company. Wall Street Zen upgraded KE from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 29th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating on shares of KE in a report on Friday, August 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $23.64.

Read Our Latest Stock Analysis on KE

KE Company Profile

(Get Free Report)

KE Holdings Inc (NYSE: BEKE) is a technology-driven platform serving China’s housing and property-services markets. The company operates the Beike platform, which connects consumers with housing agents, brokers, landlords, developers and other service providers.

Its business includes existing-home and new-home transactions, property rentals, and related services. KE Holdings also provides home renovation and furnishing services, as well as technology and data tools designed to support real estate agents, brokerage stores and property developers.

The company traces its roots to Lianjia, a Chinese real estate brokerage founded in 2001, and launched the Beike platform in 2018.

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