Mizuho Issues Positive Forecast for Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) Stock Price

Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) had its price objective raised by research analysts at Mizuho from $140.00 to $170.00 in a research note issued on Friday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an “outperform” rating on the specialty retailer’s stock. Mizuho’s price objective would indicate a potential upside of 27.18% from the company’s current price.

Other analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. Morgan Stanley raised shares of Alibaba Group from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $100.00 to $180.00 in a research note on Monday, February 24th. Barclays increased their price target on Alibaba Group from $130.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Bank of America lifted their price objective on Alibaba Group from $117.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded Alibaba Group from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $104.00 to $165.00 in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price target on Alibaba Group from $133.00 to $138.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Alibaba Group currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $148.14.

Alibaba Group Price Performance

Shares of BABA stock opened at $133.67 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $120.65 and its 200 day simple moving average is $102.09. Alibaba Group has a one year low of $68.36 and a one year high of $148.43. The firm has a market cap of $317.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.32, a P/E/G ratio of 0.61 and a beta of 0.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19, a current ratio of 1.48 and a quick ratio of 1.48.

Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) last issued its 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). The firm had revenue of $38.38 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $38.19 billion. Alibaba Group had a net margin of 12.29% and a return on equity of 12.89%. On average, analysts expect that Alibaba Group will post 7.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of BABA. Decker Retirement Planning Inc. bought a new position in shares of Alibaba Group during the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new position in Alibaba Group during the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL grew its stake in Alibaba Group by 59.0% in the fourth quarter. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL now owns 539 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $46,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares during the period. Redwood Park Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Alibaba Group in the fourth quarter worth about $52,000. Finally, Kieckhefer Group LLC acquired a new stake in Alibaba Group during the 4th quarter worth approximately $55,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 13.47% of the company’s stock.

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.