KE Holdings Inc. (NYSE:BEKE) Sees Large Growth in Short Interest

KE Holdings Inc. (NYSE:BEKE) was the target of a large increase in short interest during the month of September. As of September 30th, there was short interest totalling 32,350,000 shares, an increase of 8.2% from the September 15th total of 29,910,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 10,880,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.0 days.

Institutional Trading of KE

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its position in shares of KE by 12.0% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 18,807,246 shares of the company’s stock worth $304,865,000 after acquiring an additional 2,008,418 shares in the last quarter. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise boosted its holdings in shares of KE by 71.4% in the 1st quarter. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise now owns 120,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,648,000 after purchasing an additional 50,000 shares in the last quarter. MEAG MUNICH ERGO Kapitalanlagegesellschaft mbH increased its stake in shares of KE by 40.6% in the 1st quarter. MEAG MUNICH ERGO Kapitalanlagegesellschaft mbH now owns 115,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,579,000 after purchasing an additional 33,200 shares during the last quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of KE by 9.8% during the 1st quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 59,393 shares of the company’s stock worth $816,000 after buying an additional 5,279 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jennison Associates LLC lifted its position in shares of KE by 5.6% during the 1st quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 1,662,303 shares of the company’s stock worth $22,823,000 after buying an additional 88,376 shares during the last quarter. 39.34% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

KE Stock Down 11.2 %

Shares of KE stock traded down $2.46 during trading on Thursday, reaching $19.47. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 18,193,162 shares, compared to its average volume of 9,475,502. KE has a 52 week low of $12.44 and a 52 week high of $26.05. The firm has a market cap of $24.01 billion, a PE ratio of 47.17, a P/E/G ratio of 4.76 and a beta of -0.71. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $16.98 and its 200-day moving average price is $15.88.

KE (NYSE:BEKE) last announced its earnings results on Monday, August 12th. The company reported $2.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.22 by $2.06. The firm 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 business’s revenue was up 19.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.17 EPS. Equities analysts predict that KE will post 0.68 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on BEKE shares. Citigroup initiated coverage on KE in a research note on Tuesday, September 10th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $23.80 target price on the stock. Bank of America upped their price target on shares of KE from $21.00 to $24.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $24.90.

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.