Wilson Asset Management International PTY Ltd. Increases Position in Alibaba Group Holding Limited $BABA

Wilson Asset Management International PTY Ltd. lifted its holdings in Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA) by 20.2% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 63,338 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 10,633 shares during the quarter. Alibaba Group comprises about 2.4% of Wilson Asset Management International PTY Ltd.’s holdings, making the stock its 17th biggest position. Wilson Asset Management International PTY Ltd.’s holdings in Alibaba Group were worth $9,284,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in BABA. ARK Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Alibaba Group in the third quarter worth approximately $37,565,000. Great Hill Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Alibaba Group in the third quarter valued at approximately $2,207,000. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC grew its position in shares of Alibaba Group by 14.9% in the third quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC now owns 30,361 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $5,427,000 after purchasing an additional 3,929 shares in the last quarter. Thornburg Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Alibaba Group by 14.3% in the third quarter. Thornburg Investment Management Inc. now owns 553,384 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $98,906,000 after purchasing an additional 69,232 shares during the period. Finally, Jennison Associates LLC grew its holdings in shares of Alibaba Group by 11.9% in the fourth quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 54,235 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $7,950,000 after purchasing an additional 5,760 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 13.47% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have weighed in on the stock. DZ Bank lowered shares of Alibaba Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $135.00 target price for the company. in a research note on Friday, March 20th. Robert W. Baird lowered their price target on Alibaba Group from $174.00 to $164.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, March 20th. Arete Research upgraded Alibaba Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $190.00 price target for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on Alibaba Group from $200.00 to $180.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. Finally, Zacks Research lowered Alibaba Group from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have assigned a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $188.75.

Alibaba Group Stock Down 0.8%

Shares of Alibaba Group stock opened at $132.23 on Wednesday. Alibaba Group Holding Limited has a 52-week low of $103.71 and a 52-week high of $192.67. The company has a 50 day moving average of $132.60 and a 200 day moving average of $150.93. The company has a quick ratio of 1.33, a current ratio of 1.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22. The company has a market capitalization of $317.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.95, a P/E/G ratio of 2.42 and a beta of 0.50.

Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Saturday, February 14th. The specialty retailer reported $0.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Alibaba Group had a net margin of 9.12% and a return on equity of 7.43%. The company had revenue of $40.71 billion during the quarter. As a group, research analysts forecast that Alibaba Group Holding Limited will post 4.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Alibaba Group Profile

Alibaba Group Holding Limited is a Chinese multinational conglomerate founded in 1999 in Hangzhou, China, by Jack Ma and a group of co‑founders. The company built its business around internet-based commerce and related services and has grown into one of the largest e-commerce and technology companies in the world. Alibaba completed a high‑profile initial public offering on the New York Stock Exchange in 2014.

The company operates a portfolio of online marketplaces and platforms serving different customer segments: Alibaba.com for global and domestic B2B trade, Taobao for consumer-to-consumer shopping, and Tmall for brand and retailer storefronts targeted at Chinese consumers.