Legal & General Group Plc Decreases Holdings in Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA)

Legal & General Group Plc trimmed its stake in Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA) by 6.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 573,924 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 42,152 shares during the quarter. Legal & General Group Plc’s holdings in Alibaba Group were worth $48,663,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of BABA. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Alibaba Group by 21.1% during the fourth quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC now owns 155,440 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $13,180,000 after purchasing an additional 27,088 shares during the period. Berkshire Asset Management LLC PA bought a new position in shares of Alibaba Group during the 4th quarter worth $911,000. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC grew its stake in shares of Alibaba Group by 131.2% during the 4th quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 74,807 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $6,343,000 after acquiring an additional 42,446 shares during the period. Bailard Inc. increased its holdings in Alibaba Group by 46.3% in the 4th quarter. Bailard Inc. now owns 10,245 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $869,000 after acquiring an additional 3,242 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Park Avenue Securities LLC raised its stake in Alibaba Group by 31.3% in the 4th quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 18,465 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $1,566,000 after acquiring an additional 4,397 shares during the period. 13.47% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Alibaba Group Stock Up 3.6 %

Shares of Alibaba Group stock opened at $107.89 on Friday. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $126.59 and its 200-day moving average price is $104.64. Alibaba Group Holding Limited has a 52-week low of $68.36 and a 52-week high of $148.43. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $256.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.59, a P/E/G ratio of 0.61 and a beta of 0.24.

Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The specialty retailer reported $2.77 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.84 by ($0.07). Alibaba Group had a return on equity of 12.89% and a net margin of 12.29%. The firm had revenue of $38.38 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $38.19 billion. Equities research analysts forecast that Alibaba Group Holding Limited will post 7.86 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

BABA has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Benchmark lifted their price objective on shares of Alibaba Group from $118.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. StockNews.com upgraded Alibaba Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 3rd. Morgan Stanley raised Alibaba Group from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $100.00 to $180.00 in a report on Monday, February 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Alibaba Group from $125.00 to $170.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Finally, Mizuho increased their price target on shares of Alibaba Group from $140.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, March 28th. Fifteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $150.36.

Alibaba Group 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.