Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) Stock Price Down 6.9% – What’s Next?

Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA) fell 6.9% on Thursday. The company traded as low as $93.42 and last traded at $94.4730. Approximately 25,298,123 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 121% from the average daily volume of 11,451,792 shares. The stock had previously closed at $101.52.

Recent Alibaba Group Headlines

Here are a few of the latest headlines about BABA:

• Positive Sentiment: DZ Bank upgraded Alibaba from “hold” to “buy” and set a $140 price target, signaling confidence in the shares’ potential recovery. DZ Bank rating
• Negative Sentiment: Reports say the U.S. Commerce Department is preparing rules that could restrict Chinese AI developers from remotely using advanced Nvidia processors hosted in overseas data centers. That could limit computing capacity for Alibaba’s cloud and AI businesses. Potential U.S. AI chip restrictions
• Negative Sentiment: Coverage has linked Alibaba to Singapore-based Megaspeed International, an Nvidia partner, and reported that financing connections through Singapore and Malaysia units are under scrutiny. The allegations could increase regulatory and reputational risks; the rules’ final scope and any direct impact on Alibaba remain uncertain. Reports on Alibaba and Megaspeed

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $165.00 target price on shares of Alibaba Group in a research note on Monday, September 7th. Citigroup lifted their target price on Alibaba Group from $190.00 to $193.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 8th. Piper Sandler lowered shares of Alibaba Group to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 8th. Robert W. Baird reduced their price target on shares of Alibaba Group from $164.00 to $160.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 21st. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of Alibaba Group from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Friday, October 2nd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $183.53.

Alibaba Group Stock Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $235.03 billion, a PE ratio of 22.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.31 and a beta of 0.44. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $107.56 and a 200-day moving average of $123.99. The company has a quick ratio of 1.36, a current ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21.

Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, August 14th. The specialty retailer reported $1.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.94 by ($0.68). Alibaba Group had a net margin of 7.00% and a return on equity of 4.79%. The company had revenue of $39.64 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $39.52 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $14.75 EPS. Alibaba Group’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that Alibaba Group Holding Limited will post 5.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Yongming Wu acquired 350,000 shares of Alibaba Group stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 24th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $14.24 per share, for a total transaction of $4,984,000.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer owned 1,364,418 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $19,429,312.32. This trade represents a 34.50% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Fang Jiang sold 885,272 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $13.55, for a total transaction of $11,995,435.60. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 4,679,097 shares in the company, valued at $63,401,764.35. The trade was a 15.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 999,971 shares of company stock valued at $13,563,304 over the last ninety days. 12.50% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Alibaba Group

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. First Trust Advisors LP increased its holdings in Alibaba Group by 136.9% in the third quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 132,752 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $14,276,000 after buying an additional 76,726 shares during the last quarter. BNP Paribas lifted its holdings in Alibaba Group by 3.9% during the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas now owns 74,899 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $8,056,000 after buying an additional 2,801 shares during the last quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Alibaba Group by 4.2% during the 3rd quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 7,584 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $816,000 after buying an additional 309 shares during the last quarter. Allianz SE boosted its position in shares of Alibaba Group by 61.7% during the 3rd quarter. Allianz SE now owns 59,944 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $6,446,000 after acquiring an additional 22,882 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Texas Yale Capital Corp. boosted its position in shares of Alibaba Group by 147.2% during the 3rd quarter. Texas Yale Capital Corp. now owns 16,543 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $1,779,000 after acquiring an additional 9,850 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 13.47% of the company’s stock.

Alibaba Group Company Profile

Alibaba Group Holding Limited is a technology and commerce company founded in 1999 and headquartered in Hangzhou, China. It operates digital platforms that connect consumers, merchants, businesses and other participants in commerce. Its businesses include China-focused marketplaces such as Taobao and Tmall, international platforms including AliExpress and Alibaba.com, and Alibaba Cloud, which provides cloud computing and related technology services. The group also has operations in areas such as logistics, local services and digital media.