Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) Shares Up 1.1% – Still a Buy?

Shares of Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA) shot up 1.1% on Friday. The company traded as high as $109.69 and last traded at $109.2380. 9,501,250 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 17% from the average daily volume of 11,403,587 shares. The stock had previously closed at $108.07.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

BABA has been the subject of several research reports. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Alibaba Group from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Friday, October 2nd. Robert W. Baird cut their target price on shares of Alibaba Group from $164.00 to $160.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 21st. Benchmark restated a “buy” rating on shares of Alibaba Group in a report on Thursday, August 20th. Piper Sandler cut shares of Alibaba Group to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 8th. Finally, Citigroup increased their price target on Alibaba Group from $190.00 to $193.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 8th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have given a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $182.89.

Alibaba Group Stock Up 1.1%

The firm has a 50-day moving average of $108.42 and a 200 day moving average of $125.31. The stock has a market capitalization of $271.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 0.44. The company has a current ratio of 1.36, a quick ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21.

Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, August 14th. The specialty retailer reported $1.26 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.94 by ($0.68). The company had revenue of $39.64 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $39.52 billion. Alibaba Group had a return on equity of 4.79% and a net margin of 7.00%. The firm’s revenue was up 8.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $14.75 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Alibaba Group Holding Limited will post 5.76 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other Alibaba Group news, insider Fang Jiang sold 885,272 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $13.55, for a total value of $11,995,435.60. Following the transaction, the insider owned 4,679,097 shares in the company, valued at $63,401,764.35. The trade was a 15.91% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Joseph Tsai acquired 720,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 24th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $14.29 per share, with a total value of $10,288,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 114,979,168 shares in the company, valued at $1,643,052,310.72. The trade was a 0.63% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 999,971 shares of company stock worth $13,563,304 over the last three months. 12.50% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. AMF Tjanstepension AB boosted its stake in Alibaba Group by 4.1% during the first quarter. AMF Tjanstepension AB now owns 2,206,634 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $276,844,000 after buying an additional 86,613 shares in the last quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Alibaba Group by 6.7% during the second quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 754,749 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $72,441,000 after acquiring an additional 47,358 shares during the period. Sei Investments Co. lifted its holdings in shares of Alibaba Group by 63.5% in the first quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 573,409 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $71,940,000 after purchasing an additional 222,666 shares in the last quarter. Candriam S.C.A. lifted its holdings in shares of Alibaba Group by 104.6% in the first quarter. Candriam S.C.A. now owns 564,818 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $70,862,000 after purchasing an additional 288,738 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Alibaba Group by 19.3% in the first quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 534,794 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $67,095,000 after buying an additional 86,484 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 13.47% of the company’s stock.

About Alibaba Group

Alibaba Group Holding Limited is a technology and commerce company founded in 1999 and headquartered in Hangzhou, China. It operates digital platforms that connect consumers, merchants, businesses and other participants in commerce.

Its businesses include China-focused marketplaces such as Taobao and Tmall, international platforms including AliExpress and Alibaba.com, and Alibaba Cloud, which provides cloud computing and related technology services. The group also has operations in areas such as logistics, local services and digital media.

Alibaba serves customers and businesses in China and across international markets.