Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) Trading Up 9.3% After Analyst Upgrade

Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA) was up 9.3% during mid-day trading on Thursday after Benchmark raised their price target on the stock from $118.00 to $190.00. Benchmark currently has a buy rating on the stock. Alibaba Group traded as high as $144.51 and last traded at $137.53. Approximately 68,377,350 shares were traded during mid-day trading, an increase of 151% from the average daily volume of 27,286,682 shares. The stock had previously closed at $125.79.

A number of other analysts have also commented on BABA. StockNews.com upgraded Alibaba Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Alibaba Group from $125.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on shares of Alibaba Group from $110.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday. Citigroup boosted 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. Finally, Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of Alibaba Group from $117.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $131.93.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of BABA. Norges Bank bought a new position in Alibaba Group in the 4th quarter worth approximately $585,479,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its position in shares of Alibaba Group by 3,180.1% in the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 3,857,760 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $409,385,000 after purchasing an additional 3,740,150 shares in the last quarter. Hhlr Advisors LTD. grew its position in shares of Alibaba Group by 64.1% in the third quarter. Hhlr Advisors LTD. now owns 8,827,600 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $936,785,000 after purchasing an additional 3,448,152 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC grew its position in shares of Alibaba Group by 454.2% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,611,571 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $383,260,000 after purchasing an additional 2,959,954 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Renaissance Technologies LLC increased its position in shares of Alibaba Group by 208.5% during the fourth quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 2,995,640 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $254,000,000 after buying an additional 2,024,640 shares during the period. 13.47% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Alibaba Group Stock Performance

The company has a 50-day moving average price of $95.43 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $92.88. The stock has a market capitalization of $341.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.14, a PEG ratio of 0.53 and a beta of 0.31. The company has a quick ratio of 1.37, a current ratio of 1.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16.

Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The specialty retailer reported $2.77 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.84 by ($0.07). Alibaba Group had a return on equity of 12.28% and a net margin of 8.98%. The firm had revenue of $38.38 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $38.19 billion. Equities analysts expect that Alibaba Group Holding Limited will post 7.86 earnings per share for the current year.

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.