Alibaba Group Sees Unusually High Options Volume (NYSE:BABA)

Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA) was the recipient of unusually large options trading on Friday. Investors purchased 371,891 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of 37% compared to the typical volume of 272,410 call options.

Alibaba Group Stock Performance

Shares of BABA stock opened at $103.71 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $246.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.04, a P/E/G ratio of 0.42 and a beta of 0.31. Alibaba Group has a 12-month low of $68.36 and a 12-month high of $117.82. The business’s 50 day moving average is $87.72 and its two-hundred day moving average is $89.41. 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 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. The firm 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 business’s revenue was up 5.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.82 EPS. Analysts expect that Alibaba Group will post 7.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Alibaba Group

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of BABA. Concord Wealth Partners increased its stake in Alibaba Group by 155.0% during the 3rd quarter. Concord Wealth Partners now owns 255 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 155 shares in the last quarter. Decker Retirement Planning Inc. acquired a new position in Alibaba Group in the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Sierra Ocean LLC purchased a new position in Alibaba Group in the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Alibaba Group during the 3rd quarter worth $36,000. Finally, Assetmark Inc. raised its position in shares of Alibaba Group by 225.4% in the third quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 397 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 275 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 13.47% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

BABA has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on Alibaba Group from $88.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Mizuho upped their price objective on shares of Alibaba Group from $92.00 to $113.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. Benchmark reissued a “buy” rating and set a $118.00 target price on shares of Alibaba Group in a report on Friday, November 15th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Alibaba Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, December 14th. Finally, Barclays reduced their price objective on Alibaba Group from $137.00 to $130.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $115.13.

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.