SVB Wealth LLC Increases Stock Position in Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA)

SVB Wealth LLC increased its stake in shares of Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA) by 252.6% in the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 21,057 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after buying an additional 15,085 shares during the quarter. SVB Wealth LLC’s holdings in Alibaba Group were worth $1,524,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Alibaba Group during the fourth quarter worth $329,367,000. Blue Pool Management Ltd. purchased a new position in Alibaba Group during the fourth quarter worth approximately $151,726,000. H&H International Investment LLC boosted its holdings in Alibaba Group by 63.1% in the fourth quarter. H&H International Investment LLC now owns 4,959,230 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $384,390,000 after acquiring an additional 1,918,730 shares during the last quarter. Ruffer LLP raised its holdings in shares of Alibaba Group by 139.2% in the 4th quarter. Ruffer LLP now owns 3,140,839 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $243,430,000 after purchasing an additional 1,828,019 shares during the period. Finally, ARGA Investment Management LP increased its position in Alibaba Group by 65.0% during the 4th quarter. ARGA Investment Management LP now owns 2,572,608 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $199,403,000 after purchasing an additional 1,013,545 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 13.47% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on BABA shares. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of Alibaba Group from $109.00 to $107.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 16th. Mizuho decreased their target price on Alibaba Group from $95.00 to $92.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, May 15th. Benchmark restated a “buy” rating and issued a $118.00 price target on shares of Alibaba Group in a report on Wednesday, May 15th. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $116.00 price objective on shares of Alibaba Group in a research note on Friday. Finally, Bank of America upped their target price on shares of Alibaba Group from $99.00 to $103.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 16th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Alibaba Group currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $109.19.

Alibaba Group Stock Performance

Shares of BABA traded down $0.02 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $78.60. 2,591,256 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 16,875,068. Alibaba Group Holding Limited has a 12 month low of $66.63 and a 12 month high of $102.50. The stock has a market capitalization of $199.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.47 and a beta of 0.33. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $76.93 and its 200-day moving average price is $75.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a quick ratio of 1.79 and a current ratio of 1.79.

Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 14th. The specialty retailer reported $1.05 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.92 by $0.13. The company had revenue of $30.73 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $30.59 billion. Alibaba Group had a return on equity of 12.70% and a net margin of 8.44%. Equities analysts predict that Alibaba Group Holding Limited will post 6.96 earnings per share for the current year.

Alibaba Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a None dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 12th. Investors of record on Thursday, June 13th were paid a dividend of $1.66 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, June 13th. This represents a dividend yield of 3%. Alibaba Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 22.84%.

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.