Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC Acquires New Position in Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA)

Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund bought 14,027 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $1,189,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Alibaba Group by 4.6% in the third quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC now owns 8,019 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $851,000 after purchasing an additional 354 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Alibaba Group by 6.2% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 52,563 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $5,578,000 after buying an additional 3,046 shares during the period. Portside Wealth Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Alibaba Group in the 3rd quarter valued at about $312,000. Confluence Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Alibaba Group in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $214,000. Finally, CWA Asset Management Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Alibaba Group in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $3,123,000. Institutional investors own 13.47% of the company’s stock.

Alibaba Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE BABA opened at $140.59 on Monday. Alibaba Group Holding Limited has a fifty-two week low of $68.36 and a fifty-two week high of $145.36. The stock has a market capitalization of $334.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.32, a PEG ratio of 0.61 and a beta of 0.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19, a current ratio of 1.48 and a quick ratio of 1.48. The business has a 50-day moving average of $105.46 and a 200-day moving average of $96.90.

Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The specialty retailer reported $2.77 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.84 by ($0.07). The company had revenue of $38.38 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $38.19 billion. Alibaba Group had a return on equity of 12.89% and a net margin of 12.29%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Alibaba Group Holding Limited will post 7.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

BABA has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Benchmark upped their target price on shares of Alibaba Group from $118.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Alibaba Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Bank of America raised their price objective on Alibaba Group from $117.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Citigroup boosted their target price on Alibaba Group from $133.00 to $138.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Finally, Arete Research raised Alibaba Group to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Fifteen research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $144.07.

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.