Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) Trading 3.8% Higher - Time to Buy?

Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA - Get Free Report)'s share price was up 3.8% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $114.54 and last traded at $114.30. Approximately 9,144,091 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 56% from the average daily volume of 20,605,817 shares. The stock had previously closed at $110.15.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on BABA shares. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded shares of Alibaba Group from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $104.00 to $165.00 in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. Mizuho upgraded shares of Alibaba Group to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, April 18th. Barclays lifted their price objective on Alibaba Group from $130.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Citigroup reduced their target price on Alibaba Group from $170.00 to $169.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised Alibaba Group from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $100.00 to $180.00 in a research note on Monday, February 24th. Fourteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $150.36.

Alibaba Group Trading Down 0.4 %

The company has a 50 day moving average price of $126.71 and a 200 day moving average price of $104.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19, a quick ratio of 1.48 and a current ratio of 1.48. The firm has a market cap of $283.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.61 and a beta of 0.24.

Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The specialty retailer reported $2.77 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.84 by ($0.07). The company had revenue of $38.38 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $38.19 billion. Alibaba Group had a return on equity of 12.89% and a net margin of 12.29%. On average, research analysts expect that Alibaba Group Holding Limited will post 7.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Alibaba Group

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in BABA. Decker Retirement Planning Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Alibaba Group in the fourth quarter valued at $31,000. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC acquired a new position in Alibaba Group in the 1st quarter valued at about $31,000. Inlight Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Alibaba Group in the 1st quarter valued at about $31,000. Sierra Ocean LLC purchased a new stake in Alibaba Group during the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. Finally, ORG Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Alibaba Group by 950.0% during the first quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 315 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 285 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 13.47% of the company's stock.

About Alibaba Group

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.