Cerity Partners LLC Increases Stock Holdings in Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA)

Cerity Partners LLC increased its stake in Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA) by 299.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 82,888 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 62,163 shares during the quarter. Cerity Partners LLC’s holdings in Alibaba Group were worth $6,428,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Sanders Capital LLC increased its stake in shares of Alibaba Group by 322.7% during the third quarter. Sanders Capital LLC now owns 15,029,238 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $1,303,636,000 after purchasing an additional 11,473,618 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Stanley increased its stake in Alibaba Group by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 12,815,514 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $1,128,919,000 after buying an additional 142,563 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its holdings in shares of Alibaba Group by 461.2% during the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 4,215,884 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $365,686,000 after acquiring an additional 3,464,723 shares during the last quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Alibaba Group by 108,264.6% in the fourth quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 3,711,488 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $326,945,000 after acquiring an additional 3,708,063 shares in the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. lifted its position in shares of Alibaba Group by 65.6% in the third quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 3,508,392 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $304,318,000 after acquiring an additional 1,389,233 shares in the last quarter. 13.47% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Alibaba Group Stock Down 0.9 %

Shares of BABA opened at $70.64 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.80, a quick ratio of 1.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12. The firm has a market cap of $179.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.03 and a beta of 0.46. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $73.51 and its 200 day moving average price is $76.22. Alibaba Group Holding Limited has a 12-month low of $66.63 and a 12-month high of $102.50.

Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) last released 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 net margin of 10.75% and a return on equity of 12.65%. The company had revenue of $260.35 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $260.26 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.44 earnings per share. Alibaba Group’s revenue was up 5.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Alibaba Group Holding Limited will post 7.97 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

BABA has been the topic of several recent research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of Alibaba Group from $105.00 to $100.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 9th. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price objective on shares of Alibaba Group from $121.00 to $105.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 8th. Morgan Stanley reissued an “equal weight” rating and issued a $85.00 target price on shares of Alibaba Group in a research note on Tuesday, April 9th. Benchmark restated a “buy” rating and issued a $118.00 price target on shares of Alibaba Group in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Alibaba Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 27th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $112.91.

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.