Short Interest in Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA) Drops By 14.3%

Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA) saw a significant decline in short interest in the month of December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 37,520,000 shares, a decline of 14.3% from the December 15th total of 43,800,000 shares. Currently, 1.6% of the shares of the company are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 15,450,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.4 days.

Alibaba Group Price Performance

NYSE BABA traded up $2.73 on Friday, reaching $85.16. The company had a trading volume of 21,072,995 shares, compared to its average volume of 12,020,852. The stock has a market capitalization of $202.93 billion, a PE ratio of 17.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.40 and a beta of 0.30. Alibaba Group has a 12 month low of $66.63 and a 12 month high of $117.82. 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 firm’s 50 day moving average price is $86.24 and its 200 day moving average price is $87.59.

Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) last issued its earnings results on Friday, November 15th. The specialty retailer reported $15.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.87 by $13.19. Alibaba Group had a return on equity of 12.28% and a net margin of 8.98%. The firm had revenue of $236.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $239.45 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.82 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 5.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts predict that Alibaba Group will post 8.44 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have commented on BABA. StockNews.com cut shares of Alibaba Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, December 14th. Bank of America upped their price objective on Alibaba Group from $106.00 to $124.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Benchmark reissued a “buy” rating and set a $118.00 price target on shares of Alibaba Group in a report on Friday, November 15th. Mizuho raised their price objective on Alibaba Group from $92.00 to $113.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. Finally, Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on Alibaba Group from $88.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $115.13.

Institutional Trading of Alibaba Group

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Concord Wealth Partners increased its position in Alibaba Group by 155.0% in the third quarter. Concord Wealth Partners now owns 255 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 155 shares during the last quarter. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL purchased a new position in shares of Alibaba Group in the 2nd quarter worth $27,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Alibaba Group in the 3rd quarter worth $36,000. Decker Retirement Planning Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Alibaba Group in the 4th quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, Assetmark Inc. raised its position in shares of Alibaba Group by 225.4% during the 3rd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 397 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 275 shares in the last quarter. 13.47% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.