Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) Shares Gap Down – Here’s Why

Shares of Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA) gapped down prior to trading on Monday . The stock had previously closed at $143.75, but opened at $135.80. Alibaba Group shares last traded at $129.32, with a volume of 34,331,667 shares trading hands.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently issued reports on BABA. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Alibaba Group from $133.00 to $138.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 10th. StockNews.com upgraded Alibaba Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday. Benchmark upped their target price on Alibaba Group from $118.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday. Morgan Stanley upgraded Alibaba Group from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $100.00 to $180.00 in a research report on Monday. Finally, Mizuho upped their price objective on Alibaba Group from $92.00 to $113.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 12th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $138.36.

Alibaba Group Trading Down 9.7 %

The company has a quick ratio of 1.37, a current ratio of 1.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $95.43 and its 200-day moving average price is $93.09. The firm has a market cap of $308.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.57 and a beta of 0.31.

Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 20th. The specialty retailer reported $2.77 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.84 by ($0.07). The firm had revenue of $38.38 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $38.19 billion. Alibaba Group had a return on equity of 12.90% and a net margin of 12.29%. Equities analysts expect that Alibaba Group Holding Limited will post 7.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. boosted its position in Alibaba Group by 10.3% during the fourth quarter. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. now owns 27,077 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $2,295,000 after acquiring an additional 2,518 shares during the last quarter. Kingstone Capital Partners Texas LLC purchased a new position in Alibaba Group in the 4th quarter worth approximately $337,000. Toronto Dominion Bank boosted its holdings in shares of Alibaba Group by 89,409.6% during the 4th quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 562,120 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $47,662,000 after purchasing an additional 561,492 shares during the last quarter. GF Fund Management CO. LTD. purchased a new stake in shares of Alibaba Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $10,303,000. Finally, Vise Technologies Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Alibaba Group by 811.6% in the fourth quarter. Vise Technologies Inc. now owns 25,644 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $2,174,000 after purchasing an additional 22,831 shares during the last quarter. 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.