Ameriprise Financial Inc. Acquires 54,342 Shares of Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA)

Ameriprise Financial Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA - Free Report) by 13.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 471,652 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after purchasing an additional 54,342 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc.'s holdings in Alibaba Group were worth $39,992,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. raised its stake in shares of Alibaba Group by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. now owns 3,978,977 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $337,377,000 after purchasing an additional 44,901 shares during the period. Ancient Art L.P. raised its stake in shares of Alibaba Group by 77.3% during the 4th quarter. Ancient Art L.P. now owns 286,629 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $24,303,000 after purchasing an additional 125,000 shares during the period. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Alibaba Group by 68.1% during the 4th quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC now owns 3,270 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $277,000 after purchasing an additional 1,325 shares during the period. Anson Funds Management LP bought a new stake in shares of Alibaba Group during the 4th quarter worth $848,000. Finally, AXA S.A. raised its stake in shares of Alibaba Group by 3.8% during the 4th quarter. AXA S.A. now owns 510,561 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $43,290,000 after purchasing an additional 18,813 shares during the period. 13.47% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Alibaba Group Stock Down 0.4%

BABA stock opened at $125.32 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 1.48, a quick ratio of 1.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19. The company's 50 day moving average is $124.36 and its 200 day moving average is $106.28. The stock has a market cap of $299.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.61 and a beta of 0.24. Alibaba Group Holding Limited has a 1-year low of $71.80 and a 1-year high of $148.43.

Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA - Get Free Report) last posted 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 company had revenue of $38.38 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $38.19 billion. Alibaba Group had a return on equity of 12.89% and a net margin of 12.29%. Sell-side analysts predict that Alibaba Group Holding Limited will post 7.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Morgan Stanley upgraded Alibaba Group from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $100.00 to $180.00 in a research note on Monday, February 24th. Mizuho upgraded Alibaba Group to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Friday, April 18th. Barclays boosted their price objective on Alibaba Group from $130.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on Alibaba Group from $110.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Alibaba Group from $125.00 to $170.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Fourteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $150.36.

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.

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