Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA) Given Average Rating of “Buy” by Brokerages

Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA) has been given an average recommendation of “Buy” by the fifteen analysts that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Fourteen research analysts have rated the stock with a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price target among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $144.07.

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Alibaba Group from $130.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Morgan Stanley raised Alibaba Group from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price target for the company from $100.00 to $180.00 in a report on Monday, February 24th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on Alibaba Group from $133.00 to $138.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Arete Research upgraded Alibaba Group to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Finally, Bank of America upped their price target on shares of Alibaba Group from $117.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Alibaba Group

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in BABA. Fluent Financial LLC raised its position in shares of Alibaba Group by 22.6% in the 4th quarter. Fluent Financial LLC now owns 10,627 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $901,000 after acquiring an additional 1,957 shares during the period. Pinnacle Wealth Planning Services Inc. grew its stake in Alibaba Group by 3.6% in the fourth quarter. Pinnacle Wealth Planning Services Inc. now owns 3,134 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $266,000 after acquiring an additional 108 shares during the period. LM Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Alibaba Group in the fourth quarter worth about $855,000. Lakeshore Capital Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Alibaba Group during the fourth quarter worth about $1,194,000. Finally, Garde Capital Inc. grew its position in shares of Alibaba Group by 45.5% in the 4th quarter. Garde Capital Inc. now owns 1,696 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $144,000 after purchasing an additional 530 shares during the period. 13.47% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Alibaba Group Stock Performance

Alibaba Group stock opened at $132.45 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $314.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.14, a P/E/G ratio of 0.61 and a beta of 0.28. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $106.42 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $97.25. Alibaba Group has a 52-week low of $68.36 and a 52-week high of $145.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19, a current ratio of 1.48 and a quick ratio of 1.48.

Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) last announced its 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). Alibaba Group had a return on equity of 12.89% and a net margin of 12.29%. The firm had revenue of $38.38 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $38.19 billion. As a group, analysts anticipate that Alibaba Group will post 7.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.