Prospect Financial Services LLC Sells 8,133 Shares of Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA)

Prospect Financial Services LLC reduced its holdings in Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA - Free Report) by 77.6% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 2,350 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after selling 8,133 shares during the quarter. Prospect Financial Services LLC's holdings in Alibaba Group were worth $311,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Berkshire Asset Management LLC PA acquired a new position in shares of Alibaba Group in the 4th quarter valued at $911,000. Bailard Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Alibaba Group by 46.3% in the 4th quarter. Bailard Inc. now owns 10,245 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $869,000 after acquiring an additional 3,242 shares in the last quarter. Fiduciary Alliance LLC grew its holdings in shares of Alibaba Group by 18.3% in the 1st quarter. Fiduciary Alliance LLC now owns 117,943 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $15,596,000 after acquiring an additional 18,230 shares in the last quarter. Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in Alibaba Group by 18.7% during the fourth quarter. Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC now owns 268,768 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $22,789,000 after purchasing an additional 42,290 shares during the period. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its position in Alibaba Group by 19.5% during the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 4,610,035 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $390,885,000 after acquiring an additional 752,275 shares during the last quarter. 13.47% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on BABA. Morgan Stanley set a $180.00 price target on shares of Alibaba Group in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. Benchmark dropped their target price on shares of Alibaba Group from $190.00 to $176.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 16th. Arete Research upgraded shares of Alibaba Group to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Friday, February 28th. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded shares of Alibaba Group from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and upped their price objective for the company from $104.00 to $165.00 in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, Barclays upped their target price on shares of Alibaba Group from $130.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. One 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's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Alibaba Group has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $154.21.

Alibaba Group Stock Performance

Shares of BABA opened at $119.99 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $118.37 and a 200 day moving average price of $109.56. The company has a quick ratio of 1.48, a current ratio of 1.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19. The company has a market capitalization of $286.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.61 and a beta of 0.24. Alibaba Group Holding Limited has a 52-week low of $71.80 and a 52-week high of $148.43.

Alibaba Group Cuts Dividend

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

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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