Alibaba Group Holding Limited $BABA Shares Sold by Meritage Portfolio Management

Key Points

• Meritage Portfolio Management has reduced its stake in Alibaba Group by 5.7%, selling 10,466 shares and holding 172,796 shares, which now accounts for 1.2% of its portfolio.
• Several hedge funds, including Kingstone Capital Partners and Goldman Sachs, have significantly increased their holdings in Alibaba, with Kingstone's stake ballooning by 1,349,768.3% to over 49 million shares.
• Equities research analysts are generally optimistic about Alibaba, with multiple firms raising their price targets, leading to a consensus average target of $188.06 for the stock.

Meritage Portfolio Management reduced its position in shares of Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA - Free Report) by 5.7% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 172,796 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after selling 10,466 shares during the period. Alibaba Group accounts for about 1.2% of Meritage Portfolio Management's investment portfolio, making the stock its 11th largest position. Meritage Portfolio Management's holdings in Alibaba Group were worth $19,597,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Kingstone Capital Partners Texas LLC boosted its stake in shares of Alibaba Group by 1,349,768.3% during the 2nd quarter. Kingstone Capital Partners Texas LLC now owns 49,013,718 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $5,558,646,000 after purchasing an additional 49,010,087 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of 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 during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its stake in shares of Alibaba Group by 43.0% during the 1st 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 purchasing an additional 2,584,480 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC boosted its stake in shares of Alibaba Group by 85.6% during the 1st 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 worth $1,131,558,000 after purchasing an additional 3,947,460 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Temasek Holdings Private Ltd boosted its position in shares of Alibaba Group by 23.4% in the first quarter. Temasek Holdings Private Ltd now owns 5,510,348 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $728,633,000 after acquiring an additional 1,045,789 shares during the last quarter. 13.47% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Arete raised shares of Alibaba Group from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $152.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, September 3rd. Bank of America raised their target price on shares of Alibaba Group from $168.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 24th. UBS Group reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $162.00 target price on shares of Alibaba Group in a research report on Sunday, August 31st. Weiss Ratings reissued a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of Alibaba Group in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Barclays raised their target price on shares of Alibaba Group from $145.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, September 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have issued a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Alibaba Group presently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $188.06.

Alibaba Group Trading Down 8.6%

BABA opened at $158.76 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $378.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.46, a P/E/G ratio of 1.88 and a beta of 0.18. The firm's 50 day moving average is $146.36 and its 200-day moving average is $127.50. Alibaba Group Holding Limited has a 52-week low of $80.06 and a 52-week high of $192.67. The company has a quick ratio of 1.45, a current ratio of 1.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19.

Alibaba Group 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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