Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) Trading 1.8% Higher – Time to Buy?

Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA)’s share price was up 1.8% during trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $101.87 and last traded at $100.63. Approximately 16,413,806 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 17% from the average daily volume of 19,882,875 shares. The stock had previously closed at $98.84.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on BABA. Citigroup lifted their price target on Alibaba Group from $133.00 to $138.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 10th. Macquarie raised shares of Alibaba Group from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $145.00 price target for the company in a research report on Monday, October 7th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on shares of Alibaba Group from $88.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Benchmark reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $118.00 target price on shares of Alibaba Group in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Finally, Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of Alibaba Group from $106.00 to $124.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a 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 stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $115.13.

Alibaba Group Stock Performance

The stock has a market cap of $234.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.02, a P/E/G ratio of 0.42 and a beta of 0.31. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $86.58 and a two-hundred day moving average of $88.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 1.37 and a current ratio of 1.37.

Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, November 15th. The specialty retailer reported $15.06 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.87 by $13.19. The firm had revenue of $236.50 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $239.45 billion. Alibaba Group had a net margin of 8.98% and a return on equity of 12.28%. The business’s revenue was up 5.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.82 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Alibaba Group Holding Limited will post 7.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Alibaba Group

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Concord Wealth Partners boosted its stake in Alibaba Group by 155.0% in the 3rd quarter. Concord Wealth Partners now owns 255 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 155 shares in the last quarter. Decker Retirement Planning Inc. bought a new position in Alibaba Group in the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Sierra Ocean LLC acquired a new position in Alibaba Group during the 4th quarter worth $32,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in Alibaba Group in the 3rd quarter valued at $36,000. Finally, Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Alibaba Group in the 2nd quarter valued at $38,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.