Principal Financial Group Inc. Buys 3,046 Shares of Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA)

Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA) by 6.2% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 52,563 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,046 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Alibaba Group were worth $5,578,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Concord Wealth Partners lifted its stake in shares of Alibaba Group by 155.0% in the 3rd quarter. Concord Wealth Partners now owns 255 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 155 shares during the period. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL purchased a new position in shares of Alibaba Group during the second quarter valued at about $27,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in Alibaba Group in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $36,000. First Command Advisory Services Inc. purchased a new stake in Alibaba Group during the second quarter valued at $25,000. Finally, GPS Wealth Strategies Group LLC raised its position in shares of Alibaba Group by 139.3% during the 2nd quarter. GPS Wealth Strategies Group LLC now owns 359 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 209 shares in the last quarter. 13.47% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have commented on BABA shares. Bank of America lifted their price objective on shares of Alibaba Group from $106.00 to $124.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. 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. Truist Financial reduced their price objective on shares of Alibaba Group from $110.00 to $100.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 16th. Macquarie upgraded shares of Alibaba Group from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $145.00 target price for the company in a report on Monday, October 7th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Alibaba Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $114.07.

Alibaba Group Stock Performance

Shares of Alibaba Group stock opened at $86.77 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a quick ratio of 1.41 and a current ratio of 1.41. Alibaba Group Holding Limited has a one year low of $66.63 and a one year high of $117.82. The company has a market cap of $207.76 billion, a PE ratio of 17.60, a P/E/G ratio of 0.39 and a beta of 0.35. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $98.45 and a 200-day simple moving average of $85.82.

Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, November 15th. The specialty retailer reported $15.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.87 by $13.19. Alibaba Group had a return on equity of 12.23% and a net margin of 8.98%. The firm had revenue of $236.50 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $239.45 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.82 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 5.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Alibaba Group Holding Limited will post 8.51 EPS for the current fiscal 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.