Sanctuary Advisors LLC Sells 18,293 Shares of Alibaba Group Holding Limited $BABA

Sanctuary Advisors LLC lessened its stake in Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA) by 24.2% during the first quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 57,310 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 18,293 shares during the period. Sanctuary Advisors LLC’s holdings in Alibaba Group were worth $7,190,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Hoey Investments Inc. raised its position in shares of Alibaba Group by 95.2% during the first quarter. Hoey Investments Inc. now owns 205 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Costello Asset Management INC bought a new stake in Alibaba Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Palisade Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in Alibaba Group during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Palladiem LLC bought a new position in Alibaba Group during the 4th quarter worth approximately $38,000. Finally, SJS Investment Consulting Inc. raised its holdings in Alibaba Group by 15,000.0% during the 1st quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 302 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 13.47% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

BABA has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Nomura reduced their price objective on shares of Alibaba Group from $207.00 to $178.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, June 25th. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Alibaba Group from $186.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 14th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Alibaba Group from $180.00 to $190.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 14th. DZ Bank downgraded Alibaba Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $135.00 price target for the company. in a report on Friday, March 20th. Finally, Mizuho lifted their price objective on Alibaba Group from $190.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 14th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have assigned a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $186.90.

Insider Activity

In other news, General Counsel Siying Yu sold 6,772 shares of Alibaba Group 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 completion of the transaction, the general counsel directly owned 607,234 shares in the company, valued at $7,347,531.40. This trade represents a 1.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, CFO Hong Xu sold 175,054 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $12.15, for a total transaction of $2,126,906.10. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 280,496 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,408,026.40. The trade was a 38.43% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 920,303 shares of company stock valued at $70,796,370. 12.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Alibaba Group News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Alibaba Group this week:

• Positive Sentiment: China approved Apple Intelligence for use on iPhones and other Apple devices in the country, with Alibaba’s Qwen model as a key partner. That strengthens Alibaba’s position in AI and could create a meaningful catalyst for growth. Apple Intelligence approved for launch in China with Alibaba and Baidu
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts continue to view Alibaba favorably overall, with reports noting an average “Moderate Buy” recommendation. Alibaba Group Holding Limited Given Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts
• Positive Sentiment: Wall Street commentary around China’s push for broader, lower-cost AI and new model launches such as Kimi K3 is reinforcing interest in the Chinese AI sector, which can spill over positively to Alibaba as a leading domestic AI name. What Is Kimi K3? The Chinese AI Model That Has Wall Street Talking
• Neutral Sentiment: Erste Group trimmed its FY2028 earnings estimate slightly for Alibaba and also nudged down FY2027 estimates, reflecting a more cautious near-term outlook rather than a major deterioration. Erste Group Bank lowered Alibaba earnings estimates
• Neutral Sentiment: Alibaba’s online travel unit reportedly cut jobs as business conditions remain weak, pointing to internal cost pressure and uneven performance in parts of the company. Alibaba’s Online Travel Arm Slashes Jobs as Business Struggles
• Negative Sentiment: Separate law firms have announced investor investigations into Alibaba, adding legal overhang and uncertainty that can weigh on the shares. Alibaba Investor News from Rosen Law Firm
• Negative Sentiment: Another legal investigation was announced by Pomerantz LLP, reinforcing concerns about potential securities claims and headline risk for BABA. Pomerantz Law Firm Investigates Claims On Behalf of Investors of Alibaba Group Holding Limited – BABA

Alibaba Group Trading Down 2.1%

Shares of Alibaba Group stock opened at $115.04 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a quick ratio of 1.28 and a current ratio of 1.28. Alibaba Group Holding Limited has a 52 week low of $91.99 and a 52 week high of $192.67. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $116.66 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $135.22. The stock has a market capitalization of $276.18 billion, a PE ratio of 18.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.17 and a beta of 0.51.

Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, March 31st. The specialty retailer reported $0.01 earnings per share for the quarter. Alibaba Group had a return on equity of 4.76% and a net margin of 10.31%.The company had revenue of $35.30 billion for the quarter. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Alibaba Group Holding Limited will post 6.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Alibaba Group Dividend Announcement

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

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.