Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) Stock Price Up 2.6%

Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA)’s stock price rose 2.6% during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $75.81 and last traded at $75.57. Approximately 11,768,517 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 0% from the average daily volume of 11,737,178 shares. The stock had previously closed at $73.68.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

BABA has been the subject of several analyst reports. Benchmark reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $118.00 price objective on shares of Alibaba Group in a research note on Wednesday, May 15th. Morgan Stanley restated an “equal weight” rating and set a $85.00 price target on shares of Alibaba Group in a research note on Tuesday, April 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of Alibaba Group from $105.00 to $100.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 9th. Mizuho decreased their price target on shares of Alibaba Group from $95.00 to $92.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 15th. Finally, Citigroup decreased their price target on shares of Alibaba Group from $124.00 to $122.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 15th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Alibaba Group presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $108.79.

Alibaba Group Stock Performance

The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $78.31 and its 200 day simple moving average is $75.02. The company has a current ratio of 1.79, a quick ratio of 1.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13. The stock has a market capitalization of $191.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.62, a P/E/G ratio of 0.45 and a beta of 0.33.

Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 14th. The specialty retailer reported $1.05 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.92 by $0.13. The company had revenue of $30.73 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $30.59 billion. Alibaba Group had a net margin of 8.44% and a return on equity of 12.70%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Alibaba Group Holding Limited will post 6.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Alibaba Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a None dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 12th. Investors of record on Thursday, June 13th will be paid a $1.66 dividend. This represents a yield of 3%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, June 13th. Alibaba Group’s payout ratio is currently 22.84%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Alibaba Group

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Rhumbline Advisers boosted its holdings in Alibaba Group by 1.9% in the third quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 24,034 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $2,085,000 after purchasing an additional 446 shares during the last quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia increased its holdings in Alibaba Group by 64.3% in the 3rd quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 4,230 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $367,000 after acquiring an additional 1,655 shares during the last quarter. Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Alibaba Group in the 3rd quarter valued at $2,022,000. Alps Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of Alibaba Group by 31.2% in the 3rd quarter. Alps Advisors Inc. now owns 18,771 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $1,628,000 after buying an additional 4,468 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Evergreen Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Alibaba Group by 3.6% in the 3rd quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC now owns 5,943 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $515,000 after buying an additional 205 shares in the last quarter. 13.47% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Alibaba Group Company Profile

Alibaba Group Holding Limited, through its subsidiaries, provides technology infrastructure and marketing reach to help merchants, brands, retailers, and other businesses to engage with their users and customers in the People's Republic of China and internationally. The company operates through seven segments: China Commerce, International Commerce, Local Consumer Services, Cainiao, Cloud, Digital Media and Entertainment, and Innovation Initiatives and Others.