Insider Selling: Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) General Counsel Sells $91,855.12 in Stock

Key Points

• Alibaba General Counsel Siying Yu sold 6,764 shares at an average price of $13.58, generating $91,855.12. The sale covered tax withholding obligations tied to vested equity awards and reduced her holdings by 1.09%.
• Alibaba’s latest quarterly results were mixed: revenue rose 8.6% year over year to $39.64 billion and slightly exceeded estimates, but earnings per share of $1.26 missed the $1.94 consensus.
• Analysts remain generally positive, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $187.05, while investors continue to weigh the company’s AI ambitions and related spending needs against profitability concerns.

Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA - Get Free Report) General Counsel Siying Yu sold 6,764 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, September 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $13.58, for a total transaction of $91,855.12. Following the sale, the general counsel directly owned 613,965 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,337,644.70. The trade was a 1.09% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards.

Alibaba Group Stock Down 0.8%

Shares of NYSE BABA opened at $108.89 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.36, a quick ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21. The company has a 50-day moving average of $117.53 and a 200 day moving average of $121.06. Alibaba Group Holding Limited has a 12-month low of $91.99 and a 12-month high of $192.67. The stock has a market cap of $270.65 billion, a PE ratio of 26.36, a P/E/G ratio of 1.47 and a beta of 0.51.

Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Friday, August 14th. The specialty retailer reported $1.26 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.94 by ($0.68). Alibaba Group had a return on equity of 4.79% and a net margin of 7.00%.The company had revenue of $39.64 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $39.52 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $14.75 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Alibaba Group Holding Limited will post 5.8 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Alibaba Group

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Hoey Investments Inc. lifted its stake in Alibaba Group by 95.2% in the first quarter. Hoey Investments Inc. now owns 205 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Palladiem LLC purchased a new stake in Alibaba Group in the 4th quarter valued at $38,000. Continuum Advisory LLC purchased a new position in Alibaba Group during the 2nd quarter worth $28,000. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. increased its stake in Alibaba Group by 15,000.0% in the first quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 302 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares during the period. Finally, Global Assets Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Alibaba Group in the first quarter valued at about $56,000. 13.47% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

BABA has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Benchmark reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Alibaba Group in a report on Thursday, August 20th. Weiss Ratings downgraded Alibaba Group from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a research report on Friday, September 18th. Nomura decreased their price target on shares of Alibaba Group from $207.00 to $178.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, June 25th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Alibaba Group from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 2nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Alibaba Group from $205.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, August 21st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Alibaba Group currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $187.05.

Key Alibaba Group News

Here are the key news stories impacting Alibaba Group this week:

• Positive Sentiment: China may approve Alibaba’s purchases of Nvidia’s RTX PRO 5500 chips, which would expand access to advanced processors for Alibaba Cloud and its internal AI projects. Improved chip availability could support the company’s ability to compete in China’s AI-cloud market. Alibaba nears approval for RTX PRO 5500 chip purchases
• Positive Sentiment: Alibaba announced a technology and cloud partnership with the Brooklyn Nets, providing a new showcase for its cloud, data and sports-technology offerings. The deal is strategically positive but is unlikely to materially change near-term financial results. Brooklyn Nets technology and cloud partnership
• Positive Sentiment: Wall Street’s average brokerage recommendation remains bullish, offering some support for the view that BABA may be undervalued after its decline. However, analyst ratings can be optimistic and are not a substitute for improving earnings or cash flow. Wall Street views on Alibaba
• Neutral Sentiment: CFO Hong Xu, General Counsel Siying Yu and insider Fang Jiang sold shares to cover tax withholding tied to vested equity awards. The transactions reduce insider holdings, including a larger 20.23% reduction for Xu, but their stated tax-related purpose makes them a weaker bearish signal than discretionary sales. Alibaba insider transaction filing
• Negative Sentiment: Multiple law firms publicized an October 5 lead-plaintiff deadline for a securities-fraud class action alleging Alibaba failed to disclose issues related to its Chinese military-company designation and AI “distillation” activities. The notices add headline and potential legal-risk pressure, although they largely repeat the same lawsuit information rather than announce a new ruling or financial liability. Alibaba securities class action deadline
• Negative Sentiment: Alibaba’s planned 5-trillion-to-10-trillion-parameter AI model and new Zhenwu V900 chip reinforce its long-term ambitions, but investors are concerned about the substantial data-center, chip and power spending required before customers validate the economics. The company’s latest quarterly EPS also missed consensus, increasing scrutiny of profitability.

Alibaba Group Company Profile

Alibaba Group Holding Limited is a technology and commerce company founded in 1999 and headquartered in Hangzhou, China. It operates a broad digital ecosystem connecting consumers, merchants, brands and businesses through online marketplaces and related services.

The company's China commerce businesses include Taobao and Tmall, while its international commerce operations include Alibaba.com, AliExpress, Lazada and Trendyol. Alibaba also provides logistics services through Cainiao, consumer services through platforms such as Ele.me and Freshippo, and digital media and entertainment offerings.

Alibaba Cloud provides cloud computing, data management, artificial intelligence and other technology services to businesses and organizations.

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