Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) Hits New 12-Month High – Here’s Why

Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA) shares reached a new 52-week high during trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $147.10 and last traded at $146.01, with a volume of 12773220 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $141.10.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently commented on BABA shares. Citigroup raised their price target on shares of Alibaba Group from $133.00 to $138.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Sanford C. Bernstein raised shares of Alibaba Group from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $104.00 to $165.00 in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. StockNews.com upgraded Alibaba Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Alibaba Group from $125.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Finally, Barclays lifted their target price on Alibaba Group from $130.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Fifteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Alibaba Group currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $144.07.

Alibaba Group Stock Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 1.48, a current ratio of 1.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19. The firm has a market cap of $351.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.40, a P/E/G ratio of 0.61 and a beta of 0.28. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $110.73 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $98.85.

Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The specialty retailer reported $2.77 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.84 by ($0.07). The business had revenue of $38.38 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $38.19 billion. Alibaba Group had a return on equity of 12.89% and a net margin of 12.29%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Alibaba Group Holding Limited will post 7.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Alibaba Group

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in BABA. Decker Retirement Planning Inc. purchased a new stake in Alibaba Group during the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. Sierra Ocean LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Alibaba Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Assetmark Inc. lifted its position in Alibaba Group by 225.4% during the third quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 397 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $42,000 after buying an additional 275 shares in the last quarter. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL boosted its stake in Alibaba Group by 59.0% during the fourth quarter. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL now owns 539 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $46,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Redwood Park Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Alibaba Group in the 4th quarter valued at $52,000. 13.47% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other 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.