Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) Trading 1.5% Higher – Should You Buy?

Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA)’s share price traded up 1.5% during trading on Friday . The company traded as high as $152.98 and last traded at $152.2750. 5,812,091 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 70% from the average session volume of 19,626,094 shares. The stock had previously closed at $150.06.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently issued reports on BABA shares. Nomura upped their price objective on Alibaba Group from $170.00 to $215.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of Alibaba Group from $240.00 to $230.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, November 26th. CLSA lifted their price objective on shares of Alibaba Group from $155.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 2nd. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Alibaba Group from $190.00 to $195.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 26th. Finally, Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Alibaba Group from $218.00 to $225.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 26th. Seventeen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Alibaba Group currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $194.00.

Alibaba Group Trading Up 1.5%

The stock has a fifty day moving average of $160.67 and a 200-day moving average of $143.16. The company has a market cap of $363.35 billion, a PE ratio of 21.03, a PEG ratio of 2.33 and a beta of 0.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a quick ratio of 1.46 and a current ratio of 1.46.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Alibaba Group

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Brighton Jones LLC raised its stake in shares of Alibaba Group by 40.4% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 3,411 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $289,000 after acquiring an additional 981 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. purchased a new position in Alibaba Group during the 1st quarter worth $1,840,000. Axiom Investors LLC DE purchased a new position in Alibaba Group during the 1st quarter worth $276,909,000. Ieq Capital LLC raised its position in Alibaba Group by 615.2% during the 1st quarter. Ieq Capital LLC now owns 46,135 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $6,100,000 after purchasing an additional 39,684 shares in the last quarter. Finally, B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG purchased a new stake in shares of Alibaba Group in the 1st quarter worth $1,398,000. Institutional investors own 13.47% of the company’s stock.

About Alibaba Group

Alibaba Group Holding Limited is a Chinese multinational conglomerate founded in 1999 in Hangzhou, China, by Jack Ma and a group of co‑founders. The company built its business around internet-based commerce and related services and has grown into one of the largest e-commerce and technology companies in the world. Alibaba completed a high‑profile initial public offering on the New York Stock Exchange in 2014.

The company operates a portfolio of online marketplaces and platforms serving different customer segments: Alibaba.com for global and domestic B2B trade, Taobao for consumer-to-consumer shopping, and Tmall for brand and retailer storefronts targeted at Chinese consumers.