Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) Trading Up 6.7% – What’s Next?

Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA) was up 6.7% on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $138.67 and last traded at $138.52. Approximately 14,498,688 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 21% from the average daily volume of 18,393,104 shares. The stock had previously closed at $129.85.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Benchmark raised their price target on Alibaba Group from $118.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Alibaba Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Bank of America lifted their price objective on shares of Alibaba Group from $117.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Arete Research upgraded shares of Alibaba Group to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein raised shares of Alibaba Group from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $104.00 to $165.00 in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Fifteen research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Alibaba Group has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $144.07.

Alibaba Group Stock Up 8.3 %

The company has a quick ratio of 1.48, a current ratio of 1.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19. The company has a market capitalization of $334.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.33, a P/E/G ratio of 0.61 and a beta of 0.31. The business’s 50-day moving average is $102.16 and its 200-day moving average is $95.68.

Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The specialty retailer reported $2.77 EPS 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 business had revenue of $38.38 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $38.19 billion. As a group, equities analysts predict that Alibaba Group Holding Limited will post 7.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Alibaba Group

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Fluent Financial LLC increased its stake in Alibaba Group by 22.6% in the fourth quarter. Fluent Financial LLC now owns 10,627 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $901,000 after purchasing an additional 1,957 shares during the last quarter. Pinnacle Wealth Planning Services Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Alibaba Group by 3.6% in the 4th quarter. Pinnacle Wealth Planning Services Inc. now owns 3,134 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $266,000 after acquiring an additional 108 shares during the period. LM Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Alibaba Group in the 4th quarter valued at $855,000. Lakeshore Capital Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Alibaba Group during the 4th quarter worth $1,194,000. Finally, Garde Capital Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Alibaba Group by 45.5% during the fourth quarter. Garde Capital Inc. now owns 1,696 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $144,000 after buying an additional 530 shares during the period. 13.47% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Alibaba Group Company 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.