Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA) Shares Bought by Itau Unibanco Holding S.A.

Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. raised its position in Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA - Free Report) by 521.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 260,860 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after buying an additional 218,860 shares during the period. Alibaba Group comprises approximately 0.7% of Itau Unibanco Holding S.A.'s holdings, making the stock its 28th largest holding. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A.'s holdings in Alibaba Group were worth $22,131,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Alibaba Group during the fourth quarter worth $585,479,000. Renaissance Technologies LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Alibaba Group by 208.5% in the 4th quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 2,995,640 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $254,000,000 after purchasing an additional 2,024,640 shares in the last quarter. Appaloosa LP grew its holdings in shares of Alibaba Group by 18.4% in the fourth quarter. Appaloosa LP now owns 11,843,158 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $1,004,181,000 after acquiring an additional 1,843,158 shares in the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can boosted its holdings in shares of Alibaba Group by 92.7% in the 4th quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 1,147,636 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $97,308,000 after buying an additional 552,010 shares during the last quarter. Finally, WT Asset Management Ltd lifted its position in shares of Alibaba Group by 364.4% during the 4th quarter. WT Asset Management Ltd now owns 634,200 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $53,774,000 after buying an additional 497,623 shares during the last quarter. 13.47% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Alibaba Group Stock Up 4.4 %

Shares of BABA traded up $5.33 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $125.86. 18,023,694 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 20,593,585. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19, a quick ratio of 1.48 and a current ratio of 1.48. Alibaba Group Holding Limited has a fifty-two week low of $71.80 and a fifty-two week high of $148.43. The company has a market cap of $300.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.19, a P/E/G ratio of 0.61 and a beta of 0.24. The stock's 50-day moving average is $125.16 and its 200-day moving average is $105.31.

Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The specialty retailer reported $2.77 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.84 by ($0.07). Alibaba Group had a net margin of 12.29% and a return on equity of 12.89%. The business had revenue of $38.38 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $38.19 billion. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Alibaba Group Holding Limited will post 7.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded shares of Alibaba Group from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and increased their target price for the stock from $104.00 to $165.00 in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Barclays boosted their target price on Alibaba Group from $130.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Morgan Stanley raised Alibaba Group from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and raised their price objective for the company from $100.00 to $180.00 in a research note on Monday, February 24th. Mizuho upgraded shares of Alibaba Group to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Friday, April 18th. Finally, Benchmark raised their price target on shares of Alibaba Group from $118.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Fourteen research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target 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.