Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) Shares Up 3.1% – Here’s What Happened

Shares of Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA) traded up 3.1% on Thursday . The company traded as high as $137.66 and last traded at $136.34. 7,997,031 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 58% from the average session volume of 19,036,275 shares. The stock had previously closed at $132.24.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have commented on BABA. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Alibaba Group from $130.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Alibaba Group from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their target price for the company from $100.00 to $180.00 in a research note on Monday, February 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Alibaba Group from $125.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Benchmark boosted their target price on Alibaba Group from $118.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein raised Alibaba Group from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their target price for the company from $104.00 to $165.00 in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $144.07.

Alibaba Group Stock Up 3.3 %

The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $119.59 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $101.86. The company has a current ratio of 1.48, a quick ratio of 1.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19. The company has a market capitalization of $324.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.73, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.61 and a beta of 0.28.

Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 return on equity of 12.89% and a net margin of 12.29%. The business had revenue of $38.38 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $38.19 billion. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Alibaba Group Holding Limited will post 7.86 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Decker Retirement Planning Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Alibaba Group in the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Sierra Ocean LLC acquired a new position in Alibaba Group during the fourth quarter worth $32,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL boosted its position in shares of Alibaba Group by 59.0% during the fourth quarter. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL now owns 539 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $46,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the period. Redwood Park Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Alibaba Group in the fourth quarter valued at $52,000. Finally, Vision Financial Markets LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Alibaba Group in the 4th quarter valued at $55,000. 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.