Royal Bank Of Canada Upgrades KKR & Co. Inc. (NYSE:KKR) to “Moderate Buy”

Posted by James Conley on Feb 25th, 2026

KKR & Co. Inc. (NYSE:KKR – Get Free Report) was upgraded by equities researchers at Royal Bank Of Canada to a “moderate buy” rating in a research note issued on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other research firms have also issued reports on KKR. UBS Group dropped their price target on shares of KKR & Co. Inc. from $168.00 to $125.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 20th. Wall Street Zen upgraded KKR & Co. Inc. from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, January 25th. Barclays dropped their target price on KKR & Co. Inc. from $159.00 to $136.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 6th. TD Cowen cut KKR & Co. Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lowered their price target for the company from $146.00 to $131.00 in a research report on Wednesday, January 14th. Finally, Oppenheimer cut their target price on shares of KKR & Co. Inc. from $190.00 to $187.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 6th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $152.40.

Get Our Latest Analysis on KKR & Co. Inc.

KKR & Co. Inc. Stock Up 3.8%

KKR opened at $95.69 on Monday. KKR & Co. Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $86.15 and a fifty-two week high of $153.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75, a current ratio of 0.09 and a quick ratio of 0.09. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $119.38 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $126.43. The company has a market capitalization of $85.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.90, a P/E/G ratio of 0.73 and a beta of 1.99.

KKR & Co. Inc. (NYSE:KKR – Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 5th. The asset manager reported $1.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.14 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $5.93 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.23 billion. KKR & Co. Inc. had a net margin of 11.97% and a return on equity of 5.77%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 76.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.32 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that KKR & Co. Inc. will post 5.19 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at KKR & Co. Inc.

In other news, CEO Joseph Y. Bae acquired 125,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $102.19 per share, for a total transaction of $12,773,750.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 509,257 shares in the company, valued at $52,040,972.83. This trade represents a 32.53% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Scott C. Nuttall acquired 125,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 17th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $102.66 per share, with a total value of $12,832,500.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer directly owned 15,503,748 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,591,614,769.68. The trade was a 0.81% increase in their position. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. In the last ninety days, insiders have purchased 343,872 shares of company stock worth $35,367,179. Insiders own 39.34% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Kera Capital Partners Inc. grew its position in shares of KKR & Co. Inc. by 6.2% during the 4th quarter. Kera Capital Partners Inc. now owns 2,736 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $349,000 after buying an additional 159 shares during the period. MV Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in KKR & Co. Inc. in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Compound Planning Inc. boosted its stake in KKR & Co. Inc. by 68.8% in the fourth quarter. Compound Planning Inc. now owns 17,604 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $2,244,000 after acquiring an additional 7,172 shares during the last quarter. ATX Financial Planning LLC acquired a new stake in KKR & Co. Inc. during the 4th quarter worth $806,000. Finally, First Growth Capital LLC acquired a new stake in KKR & Co. Inc. during the 4th quarter worth $301,000. Institutional investors own 76.26% of the company’s stock.

Key KKR & Co. Inc. News

Here are the key news stories impacting KKR & Co. Inc. this week:

Positive Sentiment: RBC Capital initiated coverage with an “Outperform” rating and a $137 price target (≈43% upside vs. the current price), which is lifting sentiment and likely driving buying interest from investors. RBC Capital initiates coverage of KKR (KKR) with outperform recommendation
Positive Sentiment: KKR agreed to buy a majority stake in XCL Education for $1.3 billion, signaling continued deal activity and expansion into education—a revenue-growth and diversification play that investors typically view favorably for long-term earnings potential. KKR to buy majority stake in XCL Education Holdings in $1.3 billion deal
Positive Sentiment: Unusually large options activity: traders bought ~8,120 call options (≈20% above typical call volume), indicating short-term bullish positioning by speculators or institutional players that can amplify upside intraday.
Neutral Sentiment: Coverage notes KKR expanding across education, healthcare and infrastructure — strategic moves that support growth but coinciding commentary that shares are under pressure makes the news mixed in the near term. KKR Expands Across Education Healthcare And Infrastructure As Shares Face Pressure
Neutral Sentiment: Analyst attention on KKR Real Estate Finance Trust (KREF) is shifting; changes in analyst calls for KREF could affect investor perception of KKR’s real-estate-related businesses but are not a direct change to KKR’s core results. How The Story On KKR Real Estate Finance Trust (KREF) Is Shifting With New Analyst Calls
Negative Sentiment: UBS trimmed its price target to $125, signaling some analyst caution; while the new target remains above the current price, the cut could temper further upward momentum if other firms follow. UBS Group Cuts KKR & Co. Inc. (NYSE:KKR) Price Target to $125.00

About KKR & Co. Inc.

(Get Free Report)

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.