Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA) Shares Sold by Bank of Nova Scotia

Bank of Nova Scotia lessened its position in shares of Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA) by 60.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 51,196 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 79,542 shares during the quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia’s holdings in Alibaba Group were worth $4,341,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in BABA. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company purchased a new position in Alibaba Group during the third quarter worth $287,000. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Alibaba Group during the 3rd quarter worth about $306,000. Virtu Financial LLC raised its stake in Alibaba Group by 1,033.1% in the 3rd quarter. Virtu Financial LLC now owns 134,686 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $14,293,000 after purchasing an additional 122,800 shares during the last quarter. SkyView Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Alibaba Group in the 3rd quarter valued at about $637,000. Finally, Pine Valley Investments Ltd Liability Co boosted its stake in shares of Alibaba Group by 21.9% during the 3rd quarter. Pine Valley Investments Ltd Liability Co now owns 114,981 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $12,202,000 after purchasing an additional 20,654 shares during the last quarter. 13.47% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Alibaba Group Stock Up 3.6 %

NYSE:BABA opened at $107.89 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19, a quick ratio of 1.48 and a current ratio of 1.48. The company has a market capitalization of $256.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.61 and a beta of 0.24. Alibaba Group Holding Limited has a one year low of $68.36 and a one year high of $148.43. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $126.59 and a 200 day simple moving average of $104.64.

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on BABA shares. Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on shares of Alibaba Group from $110.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Alibaba Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Alibaba Group from $125.00 to $170.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Morgan Stanley raised shares of Alibaba Group from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $100.00 to $180.00 in a research note on Monday, February 24th. Finally, Bank of America upped their price objective on Alibaba Group from $117.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Fifteen analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $150.36.

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.