KE Sees Unusually High Options Volume (NYSE:BEKE)

KE Holdings Inc. (NYSE:BEKE) was the recipient of some unusual options trading activity on Thursday. Stock traders purchased 75,148 call options on the company. This represents an increase of 245% compared to the typical daily volume of 21,762 call options.

KE Stock Performance

BEKE stock opened at $21.10 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $26.02 billion, a PE ratio of 51.46, a P/E/G ratio of 4.76 and a beta of -0.71. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $17.23 and its 200 day moving average is $15.95. KE has a one year low of $12.44 and a one year high of $26.05.

KE (NYSE:BEKE) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 12th. The company reported $2.28 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.22 by $2.06. The company had revenue of $23.37 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $21.51 billion. KE had a net margin of 5.32% and a return on equity of 6.74%. The firm’s revenue was up 19.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.17 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that KE will post 0.68 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on BEKE shares. Bank of America raised their target price on shares of KE from $21.00 to $24.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Citigroup started coverage on shares of KE in a research note on Tuesday, September 10th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $23.80 target price for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $24.90.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On KE

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise boosted its position in KE by 71.4% during the first quarter. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise now owns 120,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,648,000 after acquiring an additional 50,000 shares during the last quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co raised its stake in KE by 29.4% during the first quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 955,669 shares of the company’s stock worth $13,120,000 after purchasing an additional 217,376 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its stake in KE by 10.5% during the first quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 393,483 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,403,000 after purchasing an additional 37,500 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC raised its stake in KE by 5.6% during the first quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 1,662,303 shares of the company’s stock worth $22,823,000 after purchasing an additional 88,376 shares during the period. Finally, Swedbank AB purchased a new position in KE during the first quarter worth about $3,393,000. 39.34% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.