Amundi Raises Stock Position in KKR & Co. Inc. $KKR

Key Points

• Amundi increased its KKR stake by 65.3% in the first quarter, acquiring 1.47 million additional shares and bringing its holdings to 3.73 million shares valued at approximately $344.7 million. Institutional investors collectively own 76.26% of KKR.
• KKR beat quarterly expectations with adjusted earnings of $1.39 per share and revenue of $2.35 billion, up 38.8% year over year. The company also authorized a $500 million share-repurchase program and raised its quarterly dividend to $0.195 per share.
• KKR shares opened at $99.31, well below their 52-week high of $153.50. Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus, with an average price target of $128.08.

Amundi grew its stake in KKR & Co. Inc. (NYSE:KKR - Free Report) by 65.3% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,726,040 shares of the asset manager's stock after buying an additional 1,472,265 shares during the period. Amundi owned 0.41% of KKR & Co. Inc. worth $344,659,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Border to Coast Pensions Partnership Ltd increased its stake in KKR & Co. Inc. by 14.5% in the first quarter. Border to Coast Pensions Partnership Ltd now owns 435,000 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $40,361,000 after purchasing an additional 55,000 shares during the period. Andra AP fonden boosted its stake in shares of KKR & Co. Inc. by 201.7% during the first quarter. Andra AP fonden now owns 57,630 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $5,331,000 after buying an additional 38,530 shares during the period. Third View Private Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of KKR & Co. Inc. during the fourth quarter worth about $3,126,000. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of KKR & Co. Inc. by 125.6% during the fourth quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC now owns 19,728 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $2,515,000 after buying an additional 10,982 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. grew its holdings in shares of KKR & Co. Inc. by 152.4% during the fourth quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 174,004 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $22,182,000 after buying an additional 105,070 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.26% of the company's stock.

KKR & Co. Inc. Stock Down 3.3%

KKR & Co. Inc. stock opened at $99.31 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 0.08 and a current ratio of 0.08. The firm has a market capitalization of $89.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.87 and a beta of 1.79. KKR & Co. Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $82.67 and a fifty-two week high of $153.50. The stock's fifty day moving average is $95.71 and its two-hundred day moving average is $99.52.

KKR & Co. Inc. (NYSE:KKR - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The asset manager reported $1.39 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.26 by $0.13. KKR & Co. Inc. had a return on equity of 5.42% and a net margin of 13.94%.The business had revenue of $2.35 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.18 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.15 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 38.8% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that KKR & Co. Inc. will post 5.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

KKR & Co. Inc. announced that its board has initiated a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, May 5th that authorizes the company to repurchase $500.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the asset manager to reacquire up to 0.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often an indication that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

KKR & Co. Inc. Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 29th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 15th were paid a dividend of $0.195 per share. This is a positive change from KKR & Co. Inc.'s previous quarterly dividend of $0.18. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 15th. This represents a $0.78 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.8%. KKR & Co. Inc.'s dividend payout ratio is 26.53%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have weighed in on the company. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price objective on 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. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their target price on shares of KKR & Co. Inc. from $128.00 to $125.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, July 13th. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of KKR & Co. Inc. from $153.00 to $147.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, July 21st. UBS Group lifted their price target on KKR & Co. Inc. from $113.00 to $126.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Finally, HSBC boosted their target price on shares of KKR & Co. Inc. from $118.00 to $121.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, July 20th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $128.08.

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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding KKR? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for KKR & Co. Inc. (NYSE:KKR - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.