Wafra Inc. Decreases Position in Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA)

Wafra Inc. reduced its stake in shares of Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA - Free Report) by 27.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 38,874 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after selling 14,586 shares during the period. Wafra Inc.'s holdings in Alibaba Group were worth $3,013,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Sanders Capital LLC boosted its holdings in Alibaba Group by 322.7% during the third quarter. Sanders Capital LLC now owns 15,029,238 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $1,303,636,000 after acquiring an additional 11,473,618 shares during the period. Morgan Stanley grew its holdings in Alibaba Group by 13.8% in the 3rd quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 11,610,078 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $1,007,058,000 after buying an additional 1,406,491 shares during the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its position in Alibaba Group by 461.2% in the 3rd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 4,215,884 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $365,686,000 after buying an additional 3,464,723 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Alibaba Group by 65.6% during the third quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 3,508,392 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $304,318,000 after buying an additional 1,389,233 shares during the last quarter. Finally, ARGA Investment Management LP boosted its position in shares of Alibaba Group by 65.0% in the fourth quarter. ARGA Investment Management LP now owns 2,572,608 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $199,403,000 after acquiring an additional 1,013,545 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 13.47% of the company's stock.

Alibaba Group Trading Up 2.1 %

Alibaba Group stock traded up $1.84 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $88.54. 35,152,879 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 18,925,086. Alibaba Group Holding Limited has a fifty-two week low of $66.63 and a fifty-two week high of $102.50. The firm's 50 day moving average is $75.03 and its 200-day moving average is $75.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a quick ratio of 1.80 and a current ratio of 1.79. The firm has a market capitalization of $224.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.64 and a beta of 0.44.

Alibaba Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a None dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 12th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, June 13th will be paid a $1.66 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, June 13th. This represents a yield of 3%. Alibaba Group's payout ratio is presently 22.84%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have weighed in on the stock. Citigroup reduced their price target on shares of Alibaba Group from $124.00 to $122.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. Benchmark reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $118.00 price objective on shares of Alibaba Group in a research report on Wednesday. Bank of America raised their target price on Alibaba Group from $99.00 to $103.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday. Morgan Stanley reiterated an "equal weight" rating and issued a $85.00 price objective on shares of Alibaba Group in a research note on Tuesday, April 9th. Finally, Macquarie lowered Alibaba Group from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and dropped their price objective for the stock from $88.50 to $85.40 in a research note on Thursday, February 8th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $109.96.

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.