Sapient Capital LLC Takes $14.91 Million Position in Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA)

Sapient Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 112,776 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $14,912,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its holdings in Alibaba Group by 40.4% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 3,411 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $289,000 after acquiring an additional 981 shares during the last quarter. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA bought a new stake in Alibaba Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $6,478,000. Moloney Securities Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in Alibaba Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $208,000. Empowered Funds LLC bought a new stake in Alibaba Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $215,000. Finally, Stephens Inc. AR boosted its holdings in Alibaba Group by 12.5% in the fourth quarter. Stephens Inc. AR now owns 7,248 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $615,000 after acquiring an additional 805 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 13.47% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on BABA shares. Benchmark cut their price target on Alibaba Group from $190.00 to $176.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 16th. Wall Street Zen cut Alibaba Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, May 16th. Robert W. Baird cut their price target on Alibaba Group from $147.00 to $142.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 16th. Bank of America increased their price target on Alibaba Group from $117.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Finally, Loop Capital set a $176.00 price target on Alibaba Group in a report on Friday, May 16th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Alibaba Group presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $154.21.

Alibaba Group Trading Down 1.3%

NYSE BABA opened at $120.30 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $287.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.38, a PEG ratio of 0.61 and a beta of 0.22. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $117.87 and a 200 day simple moving average of $110.53. Alibaba Group Holding Limited has a 12 month low of $71.80 and a 12 month high of $148.43. The company has a current ratio of 1.48, a quick ratio of 1.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19.

Alibaba Group Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a — dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, June 12th will be given a $0.95 dividend. This represents a yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, June 12th. Alibaba Group’s payout ratio is currently 13.83%.

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.