Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) Shares Up 0.4% – What’s Next?

Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA) shares shot up 0.4% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $139.19 and last traded at $137.75. 7,913,517 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 58% from the average session volume of 18,753,952 shares. The stock had previously closed at $137.14.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have issued reports on BABA. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Alibaba Group from $125.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Arete Research upgraded shares of Alibaba Group to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 28th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Alibaba Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Alibaba Group from $130.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Alibaba Group from $133.00 to $138.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 10th. Fifteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Alibaba Group currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $144.07.

Alibaba Group Trading Up 1.9 %

The business’s fifty day moving average is $110.73 and its 200-day moving average is $98.59. The stock has a market capitalization of $334.99 billion, a PE ratio of 20.37, a P/E/G ratio of 0.61 and a beta of 0.28. The company has a quick ratio of 1.48, a current ratio of 1.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19.

Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The specialty retailer reported $2.77 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.84 by ($0.07). The company had revenue of $38.38 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $38.19 billion. Alibaba Group had a net margin of 12.29% and a return on equity of 12.89%. As a group, analysts anticipate that Alibaba Group Holding Limited will post 7.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Decker Retirement Planning Inc. acquired a new position in Alibaba Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Sierra Ocean LLC acquired a new position in Alibaba Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Assetmark Inc. lifted its position in Alibaba Group by 225.4% during the third quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 397 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 275 shares in the last quarter. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL lifted its position in Alibaba Group by 59.0% during the fourth quarter. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL now owns 539 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $46,000 after buying an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Redwood Park Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Alibaba Group during the fourth quarter worth $52,000. 13.47% of the stock is 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.