Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) Stock Price Up 1.2% – Should You Buy?

Shares of Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA) shot up 1.2% during trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $85.35 and last traded at $85.13. 2,758,656 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 84% from the average session volume of 17,231,617 shares. The stock had previously closed at $84.13.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on BABA. StockNews.com downgraded Alibaba Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, December 14th. Macquarie raised shares of Alibaba Group from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $145.00 target price on the stock in a report on Monday, October 7th. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on shares of Alibaba Group from $88.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Benchmark restated a “buy” rating and set a $118.00 target price on shares of Alibaba Group in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Finally, Bank of America lifted their target price on Alibaba Group from $106.00 to $124.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $114.07.

Alibaba Group Price Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $202.23 billion, a PE ratio of 17.20, a PEG ratio of 0.44 and a beta of 0.30. The company has a current ratio of 1.37, a quick ratio of 1.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $89.58 and a 200-day moving average price of $86.97.

Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, November 15th. The specialty retailer reported $15.06 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.87 by $13.19. Alibaba Group had a net margin of 8.98% and a return on equity of 12.28%. The firm had revenue of $236.50 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $239.45 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.82 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 5.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that Alibaba Group Holding Limited will post 8.44 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Alibaba Group by 20.4% in the 2nd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 49,517 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $3,565,000 after buying an additional 8,388 shares during the period. Summit Financial LLC purchased a new position in shares of Alibaba Group during the second quarter valued at about $316,000. Magnus Financial Group LLC boosted its position in Alibaba Group by 3.4% during the 2nd quarter. Magnus Financial Group LLC now owns 9,087 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $654,000 after acquiring an additional 302 shares in the last quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC raised its position in shares of Alibaba Group by 0.4% in the 2nd quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC now owns 65,625 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $4,725,000 after acquiring an additional 232 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fortis Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Alibaba Group during the 2nd quarter valued at about $558,000. 13.47% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.