Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) Trading 2.3% Higher – Still a Buy?

Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA) rose 2.3% during mid-day trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $115.02 and last traded at $114.7410. Approximately 9,144,708 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 25% from the average session volume of 12,114,328 shares. The stock had previously closed at $112.14.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have weighed in on BABA shares. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Alibaba Group in a report on Wednesday, May 27th. Nomura reduced their price objective on shares of Alibaba Group from $207.00 to $178.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, June 25th. HSBC set a $170.00 price objective on shares of Alibaba Group in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Susquehanna upped their target price on shares of Alibaba Group from $170.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a report on Friday, May 15th. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane initiated coverage on shares of Alibaba Group in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $209.00 target price on the stock. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have given a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Alibaba Group presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $186.90.

Alibaba Group Price Performance

The company has a fifty day moving average of $114.46 and a 200-day moving average of $133.92. The firm has a market cap of $275.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.84, a P/E/G ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 1.28 and a quick ratio of 1.28.

Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, March 31st. The specialty retailer reported $0.01 EPS for the quarter. Alibaba Group had a return on equity of 4.76% and a net margin of 10.31%.The business had revenue of $35.30 billion during the quarter. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Alibaba Group Holding Limited will post 6.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Alibaba Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced an annual dividend, which was paid on Monday, July 13th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, June 11th were paid a $1.05 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, June 11th. This represents a dividend yield of 93.0%. Alibaba Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 16.91%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, General Counsel Siying Yu sold 6,772 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $12.10, for a total transaction of $81,941.20. Following the transaction, the general counsel directly owned 607,234 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,347,531.40. This trade represents a 1.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, insider Fang Jiang sold 4,898 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $12.09, for a total transaction of $59,216.82. Following the transaction, the insider owned 5,559,511 shares in the company, valued at approximately $67,214,487.99. This trade represents a 0.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders have sold a total of 920,303 shares of company stock valued at $70,796,370 over the last 90 days. 12.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Alibaba Group

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of BABA. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. raised its holdings in shares of Alibaba Group by 7,680.3% in the 4th quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 6,014,147 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $881,554,000 after purchasing an additional 5,936,847 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Alibaba Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $594,477,000. Altshuler Shaham Ltd bought a new position in Alibaba Group during the fourth quarter valued at $160,410,000. Third Point LLC bought a new position in Alibaba Group during the fourth quarter valued at $120,928,000. Finally, Bbfit Investments PTE Ltd. purchased a new stake in Alibaba Group in the fourth quarter worth $106,828,000. 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.