Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) Shares Up 1.7% - What's Next?

Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA - Get Free Report) shares shot up 1.7% on Thursday . The company traded as high as $121.11 and last traded at $121.46. 5,794,751 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 71% from the average session volume of 19,961,554 shares. The stock had previously closed at $119.45.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Morgan Stanley set a $180.00 target price on Alibaba Group in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. Mizuho cut their price objective on Alibaba Group from $170.00 to $160.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Alibaba Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, May 16th. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded shares of Alibaba Group from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $104.00 to $165.00 in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Alibaba Group from $125.00 to $170.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $154.21.

Alibaba Group Stock Down 0.4%

The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $118.37 and its 200-day simple moving average is $109.56. The company has a market cap of $285.05 billion, a PE ratio of 17.27, a P/E/G ratio of 0.61 and a beta of 0.24. 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 Cuts Dividend

The business also recently announced a -- dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, June 12th will be paid a $0.95 dividend. This represents a yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, June 12th. Alibaba Group's payout ratio is currently 13.83%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Alibaba Group

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of BABA. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its position in Alibaba Group by 22.6% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 15,648,064 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $2,069,144,000 after purchasing an additional 2,885,154 shares in the last quarter. Appaloosa LP boosted its stake in shares of Alibaba Group by 18.4% during the 4th quarter. Appaloosa LP now owns 11,843,158 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $1,004,181,000 after purchasing an additional 1,843,158 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its holdings in shares of Alibaba Group by 43.0% during the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 8,595,269 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $1,136,554,000 after buying an additional 2,584,480 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its position in shares of Alibaba Group by 85.6% in the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 8,557,495 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $1,131,558,000 after buying an additional 3,947,460 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Alibaba Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $585,479,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 13.47% of the company's stock.

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.