Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) Sets New 52-Week High on Analyst Upgrade

Shares of Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA) hit a new 52-week high on Wednesday after StockNews.com upgraded the stock from a hold rating to a buy rating. The company traded as high as $129.02 and last traded at $127.18, with a volume of 42016984 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $124.73.

BABA has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Benchmark reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $118.00 price target on shares of Alibaba Group in a report on Friday, November 15th. Mizuho boosted their target price on Alibaba Group from $92.00 to $113.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on Alibaba Group from $110.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Citigroup boosted their price target on Alibaba Group from $133.00 to $138.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Finally, Barclays reduced their price target on Alibaba Group from $137.00 to $130.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Alibaba Group presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $116.93.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Alibaba Group

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of BABA. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Alibaba Group in the fourth quarter worth $585,479,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its holdings in Alibaba Group by 1,392.6% in the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 6,125,542 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $650,043,000 after purchasing an additional 5,715,155 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its holdings in shares of Alibaba Group by 3,180.1% in the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 3,857,760 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $409,385,000 after acquiring an additional 3,740,150 shares in the last quarter. Hhlr Advisors LTD. increased its holdings in shares of Alibaba Group by 64.1% in the third quarter. Hhlr Advisors LTD. now owns 8,827,600 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $936,785,000 after acquiring an additional 3,448,152 shares in the last quarter. Finally, FMR LLC grew its holdings in shares of Alibaba Group by 454.2% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,611,571 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $383,260,000 after buying an additional 2,959,954 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 13.47% of the company’s stock.

Alibaba Group Stock Up 8.3 %

The firm has a 50-day moving average of $94.31 and a 200 day moving average of $92.42. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $323.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.64, a PEG ratio of 0.53 and a beta of 0.31.

Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The specialty retailer reported $2.77 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.84 by ($0.07). Alibaba Group had a net margin of 8.98% and a return on equity of 12.28%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Alibaba Group Holding Limited will post 7.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.