Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) Sees Unusually-High Trading Volume – Still a Buy?

Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA) shares saw strong trading volume on Tuesday . 10,326,423 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 42% from the previous session’s volume of 17,657,020 shares.The stock last traded at $110.10 and had previously closed at $117.52.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. Bank of America lifted their price target on Alibaba Group from $106.00 to $124.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday. Loop Capital reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $115.00 target price on shares of Alibaba Group in a research note on Thursday, August 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Alibaba Group from $100.00 to $108.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 16th. Benchmark reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $118.00 price target on shares of Alibaba Group in a research report on Friday, August 16th. Finally, Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on Alibaba Group from $85.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, August 16th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $110.75.

Alibaba Group Trading Down 1.6 %

The company has a 50 day moving average of $88.02 and a 200-day moving average of $80.45. The stock has a market cap of $273.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.46 and a beta of 0.35. 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 (NYSE:BABA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 15th. The specialty retailer reported $16.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.87 by $14.57. The business had revenue of $243.24 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $248.32 billion. Alibaba Group had a net margin of 7.31% and a return on equity of 12.08%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 3.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.47 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that Alibaba Group Holding Limited will post 7.93 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Alibaba Group

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Barometer Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in Alibaba Group in the fourth quarter worth approximately $116,000. Point72 Asset Management L.P. lifted its position in shares of Alibaba Group by 30.5% during the 4th quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 1,148,075 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $88,987,000 after purchasing an additional 268,512 shares during the last quarter. Caas Capital Management LP acquired a new position in shares of Alibaba Group during the fourth quarter worth $767,000. Blue Grotto Capital LLC purchased a new position in Alibaba Group in the fourth quarter valued at $6,201,000. Finally, Black Maple Capital Management LP raised its stake in Alibaba Group by 7.1% in the fourth quarter. Black Maple Capital Management LP now owns 22,500 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $1,744,000 after buying an additional 1,500 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 13.47% of the company’s stock.

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.