Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) Shares Gap Up - Here's What Happened

Shares of Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA - Get Free Report) gapped up prior to trading on Monday . The stock had previously closed at $85.93, but opened at $92.01. Alibaba Group shares last traded at $92.96, with a volume of 9,264,104 shares trading hands.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Macquarie upgraded shares of Alibaba Group from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $145.00 price target for the company in a report on Monday, October 7th. Truist Financial cut their price target on Alibaba Group from $110.00 to $100.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 16th. Susquehanna decreased their price objective on Alibaba Group from $135.00 to $130.00 and set a "positive" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, August 19th. Loop Capital reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $115.00 price objective on shares of Alibaba Group in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Finally, Robert W. Baird increased their target price on Alibaba Group from $88.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $114.07.

Alibaba Group Stock Up 7.4 %

The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $96.81 and a 200 day simple moving average of $86.15. 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 company has a market capitalization of $220.62 billion, a PE ratio of 18.73, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.42 and a beta of 0.30.

Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, November 15th. The specialty retailer reported $15.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.87 by $13.19. The firm had revenue of $236.50 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $239.45 billion. Alibaba Group had a net margin of 8.98% and a return on equity of 12.28%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 5.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.82 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Alibaba Group Holding Limited will post 8.44 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Alibaba Group

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in BABA. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its stake in Alibaba Group by 1,392.6% in the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 6,125,542 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $650,043,000 after purchasing an additional 5,715,155 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its holdings in Alibaba Group by 3,180.1% during the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 3,857,760 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $409,385,000 after buying an additional 3,740,150 shares during the last quarter. Hhlr Advisors LTD. raised its position in shares of Alibaba Group by 64.1% during the 3rd quarter. Hhlr Advisors LTD. now owns 8,827,600 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $936,785,000 after acquiring an additional 3,448,152 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC lifted its stake in Alibaba Group by 454.2% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,611,571 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $383,260,000 after purchasing an additional 2,959,954 shares during the last quarter. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in Alibaba Group by 9,205.2% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,697,358 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $1,801,240,000 after purchasing an additional 1,679,117 shares during the period. 13.47% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.