Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) Stock Price Down 5.1% – Should You Sell?

Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA)’s stock price traded down 5.1% during mid-day trading on Friday . The stock traded as low as $94.65 and last traded at $95.01. 7,980,799 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 55% from the average session volume of 17,587,189 shares. The stock had previously closed at $100.14.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Benchmark reissued a “buy” rating and set a $118.00 price target on shares of Alibaba Group in a research report on Friday, August 16th. Robert W. Baird raised their target price on shares of Alibaba Group from $88.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Sanford C. Bernstein increased their price target on shares of Alibaba Group from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, August 16th. Barclays increased their target price on Alibaba Group from $107.00 to $137.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Alibaba Group from $100.00 to $108.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 16th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Alibaba Group currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $113.13.

Alibaba Group Stock Performance

The company’s 50 day moving average is $96.65 and its 200 day moving average is $84.70. The firm has a market cap of $225.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.87, a P/E/G 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 announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 15th. The specialty retailer reported $16.44 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.87 by $14.57. The firm had revenue of $243.24 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $248.32 billion. Alibaba Group had a return on equity of 12.08% and a net margin of 7.31%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.47 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that Alibaba Group Holding Limited will post 8.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Alibaba Group

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in BABA. GSA Capital Partners LLP bought a new stake in Alibaba Group in the first quarter worth approximately $529,000. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Alibaba Group by 118.1% in the 1st quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 6,430 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $465,000 after buying an additional 3,482 shares during the period. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. increased its position in Alibaba Group by 8.3% in the 1st quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 8,279 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $599,000 after buying an additional 632 shares in the last quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. raised its stake in Alibaba Group by 18.4% during the 1st quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 62,009 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $4,487,000 after buying an additional 9,650 shares during the period. Finally, Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Alibaba Group by 10.1% during the first quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 31,884 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $2,307,000 after purchasing an additional 2,929 shares during the period. 13.47% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.