Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA) Shares Bought by Franklin Resources Inc.

Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its position in shares of Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA) by 2.1% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 488,356 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 10,057 shares during the quarter. Franklin Resources Inc.’s holdings in Alibaba Group were worth $41,408,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans bought a new position in shares of Alibaba Group in the 3rd quarter worth about $321,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company acquired a new stake in Alibaba Group during the third quarter worth about $287,000. Benjamin Edwards Inc. bought a new position in Alibaba Group in the third quarter worth about $508,000. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC boosted its stake in Alibaba Group by 15.5% in the third quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 28,680 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $3,043,000 after acquiring an additional 3,853 shares during the period. Finally, Quantinno Capital Management LP grew its holdings in shares of Alibaba Group by 56.8% during the third quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 19,659 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $2,086,000 after purchasing an additional 7,123 shares during the last quarter. 13.47% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Alibaba Group Price Performance

NYSE:BABA opened at $116.56 on Friday. Alibaba Group Holding Limited has a 52-week low of $68.36 and a 52-week high of $148.43. The company has a quick ratio of 1.48, a current ratio of 1.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19. The firm has a market cap of $276.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.84, a PEG ratio of 0.61 and a beta of 0.24. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $125.77 and its 200 day moving average price is $103.96.

Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The specialty retailer reported $2.77 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.84 by ($0.07). The business had revenue of $38.38 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Morgan Stanley upgraded Alibaba Group from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $100.00 to $180.00 in a research report on Monday, February 24th. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Alibaba Group from $133.00 to $138.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Alibaba Group from $125.00 to $170.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Benchmark boosted 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. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded shares of Alibaba Group from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price target for the company from $104.00 to $165.00 in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Fifteen analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $148.14.

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.