Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) Shares Up 2.9% - Still a Buy?

Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA - Get Free Report) traded up 2.9% on Friday . The stock traded as high as $85.59 and last traded at $84.85. 9,236,075 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 15% from the average session volume of 10,840,915 shares. The stock had previously closed at $82.43.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

BABA has been the topic of several recent research reports. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on Alibaba Group from $88.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Bank of America upped their target price on shares of Alibaba Group from $106.00 to $124.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Mizuho lifted their price target on shares of Alibaba Group from $92.00 to $113.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 12th. StockNews.com cut shares of Alibaba Group from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, December 14th. Finally, Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Alibaba Group from $133.00 to $138.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Alibaba Group presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $115.13.

Alibaba Group Price Performance

The firm has a 50-day moving average of $86.06 and a 200 day moving average of $87.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 1.37 and a quick ratio of 1.37. The company has a market capitalization of $202.93 billion, a PE ratio of 17.27, a PEG ratio of 0.40 and a beta of 0.30.

Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, November 15th. The specialty retailer reported $15.06 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.87 by $13.19. The firm had revenue of $236.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $239.45 billion. Alibaba Group had a net margin of 8.98% and a return on equity of 12.28%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 5.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.82 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Alibaba Group Holding Limited will post 8.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Alibaba Group

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Evolution Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Alibaba Group by 35.8% in the 4th quarter. Evolution Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 5,505 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $467,000 after purchasing an additional 1,451 shares during the period. Kelleher Financial Advisors raised its position in Alibaba Group by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. Kelleher Financial Advisors now owns 10,218 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $866,000 after acquiring an additional 165 shares during the period. Missouri Trust & Investment Co boosted its stake in shares of Alibaba Group by 12.3% during the 4th quarter. Missouri Trust & Investment Co now owns 13,680 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $1,160,000 after acquiring an additional 1,500 shares during the last quarter. Simon Quick Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Alibaba Group during the 4th quarter valued at $223,000. Finally, Beaumont Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Alibaba Group in the 4th quarter worth $8,976,000. 13.47% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.