Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) Shares Up 1.7% – Here’s What Happened

Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA)’s share price traded up 1.7% during trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $121.11 and last traded at $121.46. 5,794,751 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 71% from the average session volume of 19,961,554 shares. The stock had previously closed at $119.45.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Citigroup cut their target price on shares of Alibaba Group from $170.00 to $169.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Robert W. Baird lowered their price objective on Alibaba Group from $147.00 to $142.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Alibaba Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Morgan Stanley set a $180.00 price target on shares of Alibaba Group in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. Finally, Arete Research upgraded shares of Alibaba Group to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 28th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $154.21.

Alibaba Group Price Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $285.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.61 and a beta of 0.24. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $118.11 and its 200-day moving average is $109.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19, a current ratio of 1.48 and a quick ratio of 1.48.

Alibaba Group Cuts Dividend

The business also recently announced a — dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, June 12th will be given a dividend of $0.95 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, June 12th. This represents a dividend yield of 0.8%. Alibaba Group’s dividend payout ratio is 13.83%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Alibaba Group

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of BABA. North Ridge Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new position in Alibaba Group during the 1st quarter worth about $26,000. Summit Securities Group LLC raised its position in Alibaba Group by 100.3% during the 1st quarter. Summit Securities Group LLC now owns 200 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 59,000 shares during the last quarter. Ransom Advisory Ltd purchased a new position in Alibaba Group during the 1st quarter worth approximately $26,000. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. raised its position in Alibaba Group by 1,960.0% during the 1st quarter. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. now owns 206 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 196 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC purchased a new position in shares of Alibaba Group during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 13.47% of the company’s stock.

About Alibaba Group

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.