Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) Shares Down 1.3% – Time to Sell?

Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA)’s share price traded down 1.3% on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $82.72 and last traded at $83.42. 4,167,734 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 59% from the average session volume of 10,247,902 shares. The stock had previously closed at $84.48.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently weighed in on BABA. Barclays reduced their target price on shares of Alibaba Group from $137.00 to $130.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on shares of Alibaba Group from $88.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Macquarie upgraded shares of Alibaba Group from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $145.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Monday, October 7th. Mizuho lifted their price objective on Alibaba Group from $92.00 to $113.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. Finally, Bank of America increased their target price on Alibaba Group from $106.00 to $124.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $115.13.

Alibaba Group Stock Down 3.8 %

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 firm’s 50-day moving average price is $87.59 and its 200 day moving average price is $87.35. The firm has a market capitalization of $191.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.44 and a beta of 0.30.

Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) last announced its earnings results on Friday, November 15th. The specialty retailer reported $15.06 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.87 by $13.19. Alibaba Group had a net margin of 8.98% and a return on equity of 12.28%. The firm had revenue of $236.50 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $239.45 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.82 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.2% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Alibaba Group Holding Limited will post 8.44 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Alibaba Group

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. TRUE Private Wealth Advisors boosted its holdings in shares of Alibaba Group by 3.7% during the third quarter. TRUE Private Wealth Advisors now owns 3,123 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $331,000 after purchasing an additional 112 shares during the last quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Alibaba Group by 6.0% during the 3rd quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,152 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $228,000 after acquiring an additional 121 shares during the last quarter. ICA Group Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Alibaba Group by 14.6% during the 2nd quarter. ICA Group Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,004 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $72,000 after acquiring an additional 128 shares during the period. Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Alibaba Group by 4.3% in the third quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,400 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $361,000 after purchasing an additional 139 shares during the period. Finally, First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. raised its stake in Alibaba Group by 3.0% during the third quarter. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. now owns 4,857 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $515,000 after purchasing an additional 143 shares during the period. 13.47% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.