Norges Bank Takes $130.17 Million Position in KE Holdings Inc. (NYSE:BEKE)

Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of KE Holdings Inc. (NYSE:BEKE) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund bought 7,066,624 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $130,167,000. Norges Bank owned approximately 0.58% of KE at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of BEKE. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of KE during the third quarter worth about $30,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in KE in the fourth quarter worth approximately $30,000. Principal Securities Inc. grew its holdings in 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 acquiring an additional 1,664 shares in the last quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. increased its position in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 1,416 shares during the last quarter. Finally, US Bancorp DE raised its holdings in shares of KE by 42.3% in the 4th quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 8,826 shares of the company’s stock valued at $163,000 after purchasing an additional 2,623 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 39.34% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently commented on BEKE. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of KE from $19.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 19th. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of KE in a research report on Tuesday, March 18th. Finally, 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. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $27.26.

KE Stock Performance

Shares of BEKE stock opened at $20.11 on Tuesday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $20.45 and its two-hundred day moving average is $19.79. KE Holdings Inc. has a 1 year low of $12.49 and a 1 year high of $26.05. The firm has a market cap of $24.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.05, a PEG ratio of 3.45 and a beta of -0.82.

KE Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a — dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 25th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 9th will be paid a dividend of $0.36 per share. This represents a yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 9th. This is an increase from KE’s previous — dividend of $0.17. KE’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 64.58%.

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.