Highland Capital Management LLC Boosts Stake in Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA)

Highland Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA) by 5.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 6,190 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after buying an additional 300 shares during the quarter. Highland Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Alibaba Group were worth $480,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Morgan Stanley grew its stake in shares of Alibaba Group by 13.8% during the 3rd quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 11,610,078 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $1,007,058,000 after purchasing an additional 1,406,491 shares during the period. Sanders Capital LLC increased its stake in shares of Alibaba Group by 322.7% in the 3rd quarter. Sanders Capital LLC now owns 15,029,238 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $1,303,636,000 after purchasing an additional 11,473,618 shares in the last quarter. Fiduciary Alliance LLC lifted its position in Alibaba Group by 27.1% during the third quarter. Fiduciary Alliance LLC now owns 14,275 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $1,238,000 after purchasing an additional 3,040 shares in the last quarter. Certuity LLC grew its holdings in Alibaba Group by 122.2% during the third quarter. Certuity LLC now owns 113,704 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $9,863,000 after purchasing an additional 62,543 shares during the period. Finally, Taikang Asset Management Hong Kong Co Ltd increased its position in Alibaba Group by 19.7% in the third quarter. Taikang Asset Management Hong Kong Co Ltd now owns 730,000 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $63,320,000 after buying an additional 120,000 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 13.47% of the company’s stock.

Alibaba Group Trading Up 0.2 %

BABA opened at $71.60 on Thursday. Alibaba Group Holding Limited has a 12 month low of $66.63 and a 12 month high of $105.05. The company has a current ratio of 1.80, a quick ratio of 1.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $73.39 and a 200 day moving average of $77.64. The firm has a market cap of $181.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.21 and a beta of 0.47.

Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 7th. The specialty retailer reported $18.97 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $19.12 by ($0.15). The company had revenue of $260.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $260.26 billion. Alibaba Group had a net margin of 10.75% and a return on equity of 12.65%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 5.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.44 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Alibaba Group Holding Limited will post 7.97 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on BABA. Mizuho reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $95.00 price objective on shares of Alibaba Group in a research note on Wednesday. Morgan Stanley restated an “equal weight” rating and set a $90.00 target price (down previously from $110.00) on shares of Alibaba Group in a research note on Friday, December 1st. Robert W. Baird cut their price target on Alibaba Group from $95.00 to $90.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 19th. Benchmark lowered their price objective on Alibaba Group from $150.00 to $128.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 9th. Finally, Macquarie downgraded Alibaba Group from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their target price for the company from $88.50 to $85.40 in a research note on Thursday, February 8th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $115.44.

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.