Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) Trading Down 2.3% – Should You Sell?

Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA)’s share price fell 2.3% during mid-day trading on Monday . The company traded as low as $85.34 and last traded at $85.39. 5,621,846 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 68% from the average session volume of 17,534,895 shares. The stock had previously closed at $87.37.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have issued reports on BABA. Loop Capital reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $115.00 price target on shares of Alibaba Group in a report on Thursday, August 29th. Benchmark reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $118.00 price target on shares of Alibaba Group in a report on Friday, November 15th. Morgan Stanley reissued an “equal weight” rating and issued a $90.00 price target on shares of Alibaba Group in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their target price on shares of Alibaba Group from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, August 16th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Alibaba Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $114.07.

Alibaba Group Price Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 1.37, a current ratio of 1.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $98.14 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $86.09. The stock has a market capitalization of $203.21 billion, a PE ratio of 17.14, a PEG ratio of 0.42 and a beta of 0.30.

Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, November 15th. The specialty retailer reported $15.06 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $239.45 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.82 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 5.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that Alibaba Group Holding Limited will post 8.44 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Alibaba Group

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. TRUE Private Wealth Advisors grew its position in Alibaba Group by 3.7% during the third quarter. TRUE Private Wealth Advisors now owns 3,123 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $331,000 after buying an additional 112 shares during the period. Venturi Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Alibaba Group by 6.0% during the third quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,152 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $228,000 after buying an additional 121 shares during the period. ICA Group Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Alibaba Group by 14.6% during the second quarter. ICA Group Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,004 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $72,000 after buying an additional 128 shares during the period. Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Alibaba Group by 4.3% in the third quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,400 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $361,000 after purchasing an additional 139 shares during the period. Finally, First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. boosted its position in shares of Alibaba Group by 3.0% in the third quarter. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. now owns 4,857 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $515,000 after purchasing an additional 143 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.