Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) Shares Up 5.9% - Here's What Happened

Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA - Get Free Report) shares rose 5.9% on Monday . The company traded as high as $134.07 and last traded at $132.72. Approximately 11,220,180 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 46% from the average daily volume of 20,594,077 shares. The stock had previously closed at $125.33.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. Barclays increased their price target on Alibaba Group from $130.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded Alibaba Group from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $104.00 to $165.00 in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. StockNews.com upgraded Alibaba Group from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 3rd. Benchmark lifted their price target on Alibaba Group from $118.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Finally, Bank of America lifted their price target on Alibaba Group from $117.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Fourteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $150.36.

Alibaba Group Stock Performance

The company has a market cap of $316.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.17, a PEG ratio of 0.61 and a beta of 0.24. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $124.36 and a 200-day moving average price of $106.28. The company has a quick ratio of 1.48, a current ratio of 1.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19.

Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 20th. The specialty retailer reported $2.77 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.84 by ($0.07). The firm had revenue of $38.38 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $38.19 billion. Alibaba Group had a net margin of 12.29% and a return on equity of 12.89%. Equities analysts expect that Alibaba Group Holding Limited will post 7.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Alibaba Group

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. North Ridge Wealth Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Alibaba Group during the first quarter valued at $26,000. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Alibaba Group by 1,960.0% during the first quarter. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. now owns 206 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 196 shares during the last quarter. Decker Retirement Planning Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Alibaba Group during the fourth quarter valued at $31,000. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Alibaba Group during the first quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, Inlight Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Alibaba Group in the 1st quarter worth about $31,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 13.47% of the company's stock.

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.

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