Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA) Shares Bought by Russell Investments Group Ltd.

Russell Investments Group Ltd. raised its holdings in Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA) by 2.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 992,784 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 21,228 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd.’s holdings in Alibaba Group were worth $76,951,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Sanders Capital LLC increased its holdings in shares of Alibaba Group by 322.7% in the 3rd quarter. Sanders Capital LLC now owns 15,029,238 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $1,303,636,000 after acquiring an additional 11,473,618 shares during the last quarter. Morgan Stanley increased its holdings in shares of Alibaba Group by 13.8% in the 3rd quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 11,610,078 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $1,007,058,000 after acquiring an additional 1,406,491 shares during the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its holdings in shares of Alibaba Group by 461.2% in the 3rd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 4,215,884 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $365,686,000 after acquiring an additional 3,464,723 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Alibaba Group by 65.6% in the 3rd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 3,508,392 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $304,318,000 after acquiring an additional 1,389,233 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund increased its holdings in shares of Alibaba Group by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 2,480,200 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $215,133,000 after acquiring an additional 18,900 shares during the last quarter. 13.47% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $85.00 price target on shares of Alibaba Group in a report on Tuesday, April 9th. Benchmark restated a “buy” rating and set a $118.00 price objective on shares of Alibaba Group in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. StockNews.com upgraded Alibaba Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 27th. Barclays lowered their price objective on Alibaba Group from $138.00 to $109.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 12th. Finally, Macquarie downgraded Alibaba Group from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $88.50 to $85.40 in a research note on Thursday, February 8th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $112.91.

Alibaba Group Trading Up 0.6 %

Shares of NYSE BABA traded up $0.44 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $75.55. 14,216,073 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 13,622,653. Alibaba Group Holding Limited has a 1 year low of $66.63 and a 1 year high of $102.50. The stock has a market capitalization of $191.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.94 and a beta of 0.46. The company has a quick ratio of 1.80, a current ratio of 1.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12. The business has a 50 day moving average of $73.19 and a two-hundred day moving average of $75.42.

Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 7th. The specialty retailer reported $18.97 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $19.12 by ($0.15). Alibaba Group had a net margin of 10.75% and a return on equity of 12.65%. The company had revenue of $260.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $260.26 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.44 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Alibaba Group Holding Limited will post 7.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.