Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) Raised to “Buy” at StockNews.com

Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) was upgraded by investment analysts at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday.

Other research analysts have also issued reports about the company. Barclays lowered their target price on Alibaba Group from $137.00 to $130.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. Susquehanna lowered their target price on Alibaba Group from $135.00 to $130.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, August 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Alibaba Group from $100.00 to $108.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, August 16th. Benchmark reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $118.00 price target on shares of Alibaba Group in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their price target on Alibaba Group from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, August 16th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $114.07.

Alibaba Group Price Performance

Shares of BABA opened at $85.62 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $205.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.43 and a beta of 0.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 1.41 and a current ratio of 1.37. Alibaba Group has a one year low of $66.63 and a one year high of $117.82. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $98.45 and its 200-day moving average is $85.81.

Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, November 15th. The specialty retailer reported $15.06 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.87 by $13.19. The company had revenue of $236.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $239.45 billion. Alibaba Group had a return on equity of 12.28% and a net margin of 8.98%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 5.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.82 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Alibaba Group will post 8.51 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Alibaba Group

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of BABA. TRUE Private Wealth Advisors lifted its holdings in shares of Alibaba Group by 3.7% during the 3rd quarter. TRUE Private Wealth Advisors now owns 3,123 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $331,000 after buying an additional 112 shares during the last quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Alibaba Group by 6.0% during the 3rd quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,152 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $228,000 after buying an additional 121 shares during the last quarter. ICA Group Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Alibaba Group by 14.6% during the 2nd quarter. ICA Group Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,004 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $72,000 after buying an additional 128 shares during the last quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Alibaba Group by 4.3% during the 3rd quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,400 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $361,000 after buying an additional 139 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. lifted its holdings in shares of Alibaba Group by 3.0% during the 3rd quarter. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. now owns 4,857 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $515,000 after buying an additional 143 shares during the last quarter. 13.47% of the stock is currently 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.