Highland Capital Management LLC Raises Stock Position in Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA)

Highland Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA) by 5.1% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 6,190 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after buying an additional 300 shares during the period. Highland Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Alibaba Group were worth $480,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of BABA. Fairfield Bush & CO. purchased a new position in shares of Alibaba Group in the first quarter valued at $53,000. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp purchased a new position in Alibaba Group during the 1st quarter valued at about $2,452,000. Dakota Wealth Management acquired a new stake in shares of Alibaba Group in the first quarter valued at approximately $390,000. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Alibaba Group by 11.3% during the 1st quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 7,342 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $799,000 after purchasing an additional 743 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Zions Bancorporation N.A. lifted its stake in Alibaba Group by 46.0% in the 1st quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. now owns 7,816 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $850,000 after buying an additional 2,464 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 13.47% of the company’s stock.

Alibaba Group Stock Up 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE:BABA opened at $71.60 on Thursday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $73.39 and a two-hundred day moving average of $77.64. Alibaba Group Holding Limited has a 52-week low of $66.63 and a 52-week high of $105.05. The company has a quick ratio of 1.80, a current ratio of 1.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12. The company has a market capitalization of $181.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.21 and a beta of 0.47.

Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 7th. The specialty retailer reported $18.97 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $19.12 by ($0.15). Alibaba Group had a return on equity of 12.65% and a net margin of 10.75%. The firm had revenue of $260.35 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $260.26 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.44 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 5.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts forecast that Alibaba Group Holding Limited will post 7.97 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

BABA has been the topic of several recent research reports. Robert W. Baird reduced their price objective on Alibaba Group from $95.00 to $90.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on Alibaba Group from $110.00 to $105.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 8th. Barclays dropped their target price on Alibaba Group from $138.00 to $109.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 12th. Mizuho restated a “buy” rating and issued a $95.00 price target on shares of Alibaba Group in a report on Wednesday. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Alibaba Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 27th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $115.44.

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.