Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) Stock Price Expected to Rise, Citigroup Analyst Says

Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) had its price objective upped by equities researchers at Citigroup from $133.00 to $138.00 in a report released on Friday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a “buy” rating on the specialty retailer’s stock. Citigroup’s price target would suggest a potential upside of 70.37% from the company’s previous close.

Several other equities analysts also recently commented on BABA. Mizuho boosted their price objective on Alibaba Group from $92.00 to $113.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 12th. Macquarie upgraded Alibaba Group from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $145.00 price target for the company in a research note on Monday, October 7th. StockNews.com cut shares of Alibaba Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, December 14th. Benchmark reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $118.00 target price on shares of Alibaba Group in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Finally, Barclays decreased their price target on shares of Alibaba Group from $137.00 to $130.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $115.13.

Alibaba Group Stock Performance

NYSE BABA traded down $2.69 on Friday, hitting $81.00. 10,498,992 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 11,254,547. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $87.93 and its 200-day moving average price is $87.31. Alibaba Group has a 52-week low of $66.63 and a 52-week high of $117.82. 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 company has a market capitalization of $193.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.43, a P/E/G ratio of 0.44 and a beta of 0.30.

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

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Acadian Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in Alibaba Group by 382.4% during the 2nd quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 20,865 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $1,502,000 after buying an additional 16,540 shares in the last quarter. Prudential PLC purchased a new stake in shares of Alibaba Group in the second quarter valued at approximately $309,000. Wedbush Securities Inc. grew its stake in Alibaba Group by 5.0% in the second quarter. Wedbush Securities Inc. now owns 7,443 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $536,000 after purchasing an additional 355 shares in the last quarter. Choreo LLC increased its holdings in Alibaba Group by 48.1% during the 2nd quarter. Choreo LLC now owns 5,789 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $418,000 after purchasing an additional 1,880 shares during the period. Finally, State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D lifted its holdings in shares of Alibaba Group by 3.7% in the 2nd quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D now owns 65,439 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $4,712,000 after buying an additional 2,309 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors 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.