Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank Buys 4,242 Shares of Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA)

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank boosted its stake in Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA) by 29.6% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 18,589 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 4,242 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank’s holdings in Alibaba Group were worth $1,576,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Decker Retirement Planning Inc. bought a new stake in Alibaba Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Sierra Ocean LLC acquired a new position in Alibaba Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Assetmark Inc. lifted its stake in Alibaba Group by 225.4% in 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 during the period. Vision Financial Markets LLC acquired a new position in Alibaba Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $55,000. Finally, Kieckhefer Group LLC acquired a new position in Alibaba Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $55,000. 13.47% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Alibaba Group Stock Up 4.6 %

Shares of NYSE:BABA opened at $147.56 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $350.60 billion, a PE ratio of 21.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.61 and a beta of 0.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19, a current ratio of 1.48 and a quick ratio of 1.48. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $111.98 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $99.32. Alibaba Group Holding Limited has a 1 year low of $68.36 and a 1 year high of $148.43.

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Bank of America boosted their price target on Alibaba Group from $117.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Benchmark boosted their price target on Alibaba Group from $118.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Barclays upped their target price on Alibaba Group from $130.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Citigroup upped their target price on Alibaba Group from $133.00 to $138.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded Alibaba Group from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $104.00 to $165.00 in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Fifteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $144.07.

Alibaba Group Profile

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.