Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) Stock Price Up 0.1% – Still a Buy?

Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA) shares shot up 0.1% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $136.25 and last traded at $134.68. 8,990,459 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 53% from the average session volume of 19,036,118 shares. The stock had previously closed at $134.48.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Benchmark lifted their price target on shares of Alibaba Group from $118.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Sanford C. Bernstein raised shares of Alibaba Group from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $104.00 to $165.00 in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. Citigroup raised their price objective on Alibaba Group from $133.00 to $138.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 10th. StockNews.com raised Alibaba Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Alibaba Group from $125.00 to $170.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Fifteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Alibaba Group presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $144.07.

Alibaba Group Stock Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $315.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.61 and a beta of 0.28. 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 stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $117.57 and a 200-day simple moving average of $101.28.

Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 20th. The specialty retailer reported $2.77 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.84 by ($0.07). The company had revenue of $38.38 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $38.19 billion. Alibaba Group had a net margin of 12.29% and a return on equity of 12.89%. On average, analysts anticipate that Alibaba Group Holding Limited will post 7.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Alibaba Group

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Fairtree Asset Management Pty Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Alibaba Group in the 4th quarter worth approximately $4,881,000. Lansforsakringar Fondforvaltning AB publ acquired a new position in Alibaba Group in the fourth quarter worth $289,000. Lighthouse Financial LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Alibaba Group during the fourth quarter worth $237,000. Fluent Financial LLC lifted its position in shares of Alibaba Group by 22.6% in the 4th quarter. Fluent Financial LLC now owns 10,627 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $901,000 after buying an additional 1,957 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Pinnacle Wealth Planning Services Inc. boosted 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 buying an additional 108 shares during the period. 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.