Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) Reaches New 1-Year High After Analyst Upgrade

Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA) hit a new 52-week high on Wednesday after StockNews.com upgraded the stock from a hold rating to a buy rating. The company traded as high as $129.02 and last traded at $127.18, with a volume of 42016984 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $124.73.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the company. Citigroup upped their price target on Alibaba Group from $133.00 to $138.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Mizuho upped their price target on Alibaba Group from $92.00 to $113.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. Benchmark restated a “buy” rating and set a $118.00 price target on shares of Alibaba Group in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Barclays cut their price objective on Alibaba Group from $137.00 to $130.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. Finally, Robert W. Baird upped their target price on Alibaba Group from $110.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $116.93.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Alibaba Group

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of BABA. AMF Tjanstepension AB grew its stake in Alibaba Group by 6.9% during the 3rd 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 in the last quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC grew its position in shares of Alibaba Group by 47.1% in the 3rd quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 100,975 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $10,715,000 after acquiring an additional 32,324 shares in the last quarter. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI acquired a new position in shares of Alibaba Group in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $299,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its position in shares of Alibaba Group by 9,205.2% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,697,358 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $1,801,240,000 after acquiring an additional 1,679,117 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Brighton Jones LLC acquired a new position in shares of Alibaba Group in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $258,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 13.47% of the company’s stock.

Alibaba Group Trading Up 8.3 %

The company has a market cap of $323.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.53 and a beta of 0.31. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $94.31 and a 200 day moving average price of $92.42. The company has a current ratio of 1.37, a quick ratio of 1.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16.

Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) last announced its 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). Alibaba Group had a net margin of 8.98% and a return on equity of 12.28%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Alibaba Group Holding Limited will post 7.86 EPS 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.