Pacific Capital Wealth Advisors Inc. Buys New Position in Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA)

Pacific Capital Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA) during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm bought 562 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $44,000.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of BABA. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Alibaba Group during the 3rd quarter valued at about $26,000. Baystate Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in Alibaba Group by 184.6% during the 4th quarter. Baystate Wealth Management LLC now owns 333 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 216 shares during the last quarter. GPS Wealth Strategies Group LLC increased its holdings in Alibaba Group by 116.7% during the 3rd quarter. GPS Wealth Strategies Group LLC now owns 325 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 175 shares during the last quarter. First Command Advisory Services Inc. purchased a new stake in Alibaba Group during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $30,000. Finally, Milestone Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Alibaba Group during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $31,000. 13.47% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Alibaba Group Stock Performance

NYSE:BABA traded down $2.17 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $79.38. 14,549,289 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 17,905,604. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12, a current ratio of 1.80 and a quick ratio of 1.80. Alibaba Group Holding Limited has a twelve month low of $66.63 and a twelve month high of $102.50. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $73.60 and a 200 day moving average price of $75.11. The firm has a market capitalization of $201.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.65 and a beta of 0.44.

Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 7th. The specialty retailer reported $18.97 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $19.12 by ($0.15). Alibaba Group had a return on equity of 12.65% and a net margin of 10.75%. The business had revenue of $260.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $260.26 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.44 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 5.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts expect that Alibaba Group Holding Limited will post 7.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. Macquarie downgraded 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 report on Thursday, February 8th. Mizuho restated a “buy” rating and set a $95.00 price objective on shares of Alibaba Group in a report on Wednesday, March 27th. Barclays lowered their price target on Alibaba Group from $138.00 to $109.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on Alibaba Group from $105.00 to $100.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 9th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reiterated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $85.00 price target on shares of Alibaba Group in a report on Tuesday, April 9th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Alibaba Group currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $112.49.

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.