Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) Shares Down 8.6% on Analyst Downgrade

Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA)’s share price was down 8.6% on Friday after JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on the stock from $245.00 to $240.00. JPMorgan Chase & Co. currently has an overweight rating on the stock. Alibaba Group traded as low as $157.25 and last traded at $158.76. Approximately 49,185,940 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 128% from the average daily volume of 21,595,035 shares. The stock had previously closed at $173.68.

Other research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the company. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on Alibaba Group from $153.00 to $174.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 24th. Erste Group Bank upgraded Alibaba Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 3rd. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on Alibaba Group from $178.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, September 29th. Wall Street Zen cut Alibaba Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, June 27th. Finally, UBS Group restated a “buy” rating and set a $162.00 price objective on shares of Alibaba Group in a research note on Sunday, August 31st. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have issued a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $188.06.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of BABA. Brighton Jones LLC increased its holdings in Alibaba Group by 40.4% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 3,411 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $289,000 after buying an additional 981 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in Alibaba Group by 13,483.0% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 19,967 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $2,640,000 after buying an additional 19,820 shares during the last quarter. Simplicity Wealth LLC bought a new stake in Alibaba Group in the first quarter valued at about $205,000. CX Institutional bought a new stake in Alibaba Group in the first quarter valued at about $268,000. Finally, Focus Financial Network Inc. increased its holdings in Alibaba Group by 3.0% in the first quarter. Focus Financial Network Inc. now owns 8,829 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $1,167,000 after buying an additional 254 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 13.47% of the company’s stock.

Alibaba Group Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19, a current ratio of 1.45 and a quick ratio of 1.45. The stock has a market capitalization of $378.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.05 and a beta of 0.18. The company has a fifty day moving average of $146.36 and a two-hundred day moving average of $127.53.

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.