Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) Trading Up 1% – Still a Buy?

Shares of Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA) shot up 1% during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $82.79 and last traded at $82.53. 2,789,211 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 73% from the average session volume of 10,507,879 shares. The stock had previously closed at $81.68.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on BABA shares. Bank of America lifted their price target on Alibaba Group from $106.00 to $124.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of Alibaba Group from $133.00 to $138.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Barclays reduced their target price on shares of Alibaba Group from $137.00 to $130.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on shares of Alibaba Group from $88.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, Benchmark reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $118.00 price objective on shares of Alibaba Group in a report on Friday, November 15th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $115.13.

Alibaba Group Price Performance

The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $86.24 and its 200 day simple moving average is $87.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 1.37 and a quick ratio of 1.37. The stock has a market cap of $202.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.27, a P/E/G ratio of 0.40 and a beta of 0.30.

Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, November 15th. The specialty retailer reported $15.06 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.87 by $13.19. Alibaba Group had a net margin of 8.98% and a return on equity of 12.28%. The business had revenue of $236.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $239.45 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.82 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 5.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Alibaba Group Holding Limited will post 8.44 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Alibaba Group

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Generate Investment Management Ltd bought a new position in Alibaba Group in the third quarter valued at approximately $12,656,000. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV lifted its position in Alibaba Group by 63.9% in the 3rd quarter. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV now owns 28,716 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $3,047,000 after acquiring an additional 11,192 shares in the last quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB boosted its stake in Alibaba Group by 6.5% in the 3rd quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 822,904 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $87,327,000 after purchasing an additional 50,000 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its holdings in Alibaba Group by 7,734.1% during the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 269,805 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $28,632,000 after purchasing an additional 266,361 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Aspex Management HK Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Alibaba Group in the 3rd quarter valued at about $115,995,000. 13.47% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Alibaba Group

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.