Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) Trading 4.6% Higher – Here’s Why

Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA) traded up 4.6% on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $118.39 and last traded at $118.00. 18,996,266 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 17% from the average session volume of 23,004,484 shares. The stock had previously closed at $112.78.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on BABA. StockNews.com cut shares of Alibaba Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, December 14th. Mizuho upped their price objective on Alibaba Group from $92.00 to $113.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 12th. Citigroup lifted their target price on Alibaba Group from $133.00 to $138.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 10th. Benchmark restated a “buy” rating and set a $118.00 price target on shares of Alibaba Group in a report on Friday, November 15th. Finally, Robert W. Baird raised their target price 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. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Alibaba Group currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $115.86.

Alibaba Group Trading Up 5.4 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 1.37 and a current ratio of 1.37. The stock has a market capitalization of $282.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.09, a PEG ratio of 0.42 and a beta of 0.31. The business has a 50-day moving average of $89.09 and a 200-day moving average of $90.30.

Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, November 15th. The specialty retailer reported $15.06 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.87 by $13.19. Alibaba Group had a return on equity of 12.28% and a net margin of 8.98%. The firm had revenue of $236.50 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $239.45 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.82 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts forecast that Alibaba Group Holding Limited will post 7.86 EPS for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Alibaba Group

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of BABA. AMF Tjanstepension AB boosted its holdings in Alibaba Group by 6.9% in the third quarter. AMF Tjanstepension AB now owns 2,789,883 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $296,062,000 after purchasing an additional 178,999 shares during the last quarter. Koshinski Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Alibaba Group during the third quarter worth approximately $213,000. Procyon Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Alibaba Group by 2.1% in the third quarter. Procyon Advisors LLC now owns 20,527 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $2,178,000 after buying an additional 413 shares during the last quarter. NBC Securities Inc. raised its holdings in Alibaba Group by 6.2% in the third quarter. NBC Securities Inc. now owns 8,513 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $903,000 after acquiring an additional 494 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Magnus Financial Group LLC boosted its stake in Alibaba Group by 5.0% during the 3rd quarter. Magnus Financial Group LLC now owns 9,538 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $1,012,000 after acquiring an additional 451 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 13.47% of the company’s stock.

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.