KKR & Co. Inc. (NYSE:KKR) Upgraded at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods

Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded shares of KKR & Co. Inc. (NYSE:KKR) to a moderate buy rating in a research note issued to investors on Monday morning,Zacks.com reports.

KKR has been the subject of several other reports. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price target on shares of KKR & Co. Inc. from $120.00 to $112.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, July 13th. Oppenheimer cut their price target on shares of KKR & Co. Inc. from $143.00 to $139.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, July 17th. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of KKR & Co. Inc. from $153.00 to $147.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their price objective on shares of KKR & Co. Inc. from $128.00 to $125.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, July 13th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded KKR & Co. Inc. from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, May 28th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, KKR & Co. Inc. presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $128.08.

KKR & Co. Inc. Stock Performance

Shares of KKR stock opened at $95.66 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $85.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.54, a PEG ratio of 0.82 and a beta of 1.79. The company has a current ratio of 0.08, a quick ratio of 0.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $95.33 and its 200-day moving average price is $100.68. KKR & Co. Inc. has a 12 month low of $82.67 and a 12 month high of $153.87.

KKR & Co. Inc. (NYSE:KKR) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, February 27th. The asset manager reported $1.24 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. KKR & Co. Inc. had a return on equity of 5.42% and a net margin of 13.94%.The company had revenue of $5.74 billion during the quarter. Equities research analysts forecast that KKR & Co. Inc. will post 5.54 EPS for the current year.

KKR & Co. Inc. declared that its board has authorized a stock buyback program on Tuesday, May 5th that allows the company to repurchase $500.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the asset manager to purchase up to 0.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are often an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

KKR & Co. Inc. Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 29th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 15th were issued a dividend of $0.195 per share. This represents a $0.78 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 15th. This is an increase from KKR & Co. Inc.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.18. KKR & Co. Inc.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 26.53%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Yael Cosset sold 30,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $58.80, for a total value of $1,764,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 127,868 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,518,638.40. The trade was a 19.00% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 23.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On KKR & Co. Inc.

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. SteelPeak Wealth LLC boosted its holdings in KKR & Co. Inc. by 3.2% in the 4th quarter. SteelPeak Wealth LLC now owns 2,549 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $325,000 after buying an additional 80 shares during the period. Diversified Trust Co. raised its holdings in KKR & Co. Inc. by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Diversified Trust Co. now owns 5,562 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $709,000 after acquiring an additional 82 shares during the period. Modera Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in KKR & Co. Inc. by 4.9% during the 4th quarter. Modera Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,789 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $228,000 after acquiring an additional 84 shares during the period. Sound Income Strategies LLC raised its holdings in KKR & Co. Inc. by 9.1% during the 4th quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 1,084 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $143,000 after acquiring an additional 90 shares during the period. Finally, Praxis Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of KKR & Co. Inc. by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Praxis Investment Management Inc. now owns 10,006 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $1,276,000 after acquiring an additional 94 shares in the last quarter. 76.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About KKR & Co. Inc.

KKR & Co Inc is a global investment firm headquartered in New York City that specializes in private markets and alternative asset management. Founded in 1976 by Jerome Kohlberg Jr., Henry Kravis and George R. Roberts, the firm built its reputation in leveraged buyouts and has since expanded into a multi-strategy asset manager. KKR operates across private equity, credit, real assets (including real estate and infrastructure), growth equity and hedge fund strategies, offering a range of investment products and strategies for institutional and private investors.

KKR manages capital through traditional closed-end funds as well as customized vehicles such as separate accounts, co-investments, and listed investment vehicles.