Alibaba Group Holding Limited $BABA Shares Sold by Dimensional Fund Advisors LP

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP decreased its holdings in shares of Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA) by 7.1% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,823,782 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 140,394 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP’s holdings in Alibaba Group were worth $228,812,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in BABA. Brighton Jones LLC grew its position in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 981 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Alibaba Group during the first quarter worth about $254,000. Bank of Nova Scotia raised its position in shares of Alibaba Group by 313.0% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 21,778 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $2,470,000 after purchasing an additional 16,505 shares during the last quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Alibaba Group during the 2nd quarter worth about $1,613,000. Finally, Ieq Capital LLC lifted its stake in Alibaba Group by 51.9% in the 2nd quarter. Ieq Capital LLC now owns 70,060 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $7,946,000 after buying an additional 23,925 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 13.47% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

BABA has been the subject of several research reports. Freedom Capital upgraded Alibaba Group from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Nomura lowered their price target on Alibaba Group from $207.00 to $178.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, June 25th. Mizuho boosted their price target on Alibaba Group from $190.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 14th. Susquehanna increased their price objective on Alibaba Group from $170.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research note on Friday, May 15th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Alibaba Group in a report on Wednesday, May 27th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have issued a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $186.90.

Insider Activity at Alibaba Group

In other Alibaba Group news, CFO Hong Xu sold 175,054 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $12.15, for a total transaction of $2,126,906.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 280,496 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,408,026.40. This trade represents a 38.43% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, General Counsel Siying Yu sold 6,772 shares of Alibaba Group stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $12.10, for a total transaction of $81,941.20. Following the sale, the general counsel owned 607,234 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,347,531.40. This represents a 1.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders have sold a total of 920,303 shares of company stock valued at $70,796,370 over the last quarter. 12.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Alibaba Group Stock Performance

Shares of Alibaba Group stock opened at $114.09 on Friday. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $114.86 and its 200 day moving average price is $134.23. The company has a market cap of $273.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.73, a PEG ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 0.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a quick ratio of 1.28 and a current ratio of 1.28. Alibaba Group Holding Limited has a one year low of $91.99 and a one year high of $192.67.

Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, March 31st. The specialty retailer reported $0.01 earnings per share for the quarter. Alibaba Group had a net margin of 10.31% and a return on equity of 4.76%. The company had revenue of $35.30 billion for the quarter. On average, research analysts predict that Alibaba Group Holding Limited will post 6.28 EPS for the current year.

Alibaba Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed an annual dividend, which was paid on Monday, July 13th. Investors of record on Thursday, June 11th were given a dividend of $1.05 per share. This represents a dividend yield of 93.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, June 11th. Alibaba Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 16.91%.

Alibaba Group News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Alibaba Group this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Alibaba’s AI efforts got another boost after a unit said its “5-in-1” AI system can give robots a unified brain, body, and limbs, reinforcing the company’s push into next-generation robotics and applied AI. Article
• Positive Sentiment: Investor sentiment may also be supported by news that Alibaba’s Qwen model will power Apple Intelligence features in China, a meaningful commercialization milestone for its AI platform. Article
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts and market commentators continue to highlight Alibaba’s steady AI progress, suggesting the company is building credibility as a competitive AI player. Article
• Neutral Sentiment: Alibaba-backed AGTech signed a technical services agreement to build a trading platform for the Hong Kong Gold Exchange, a business-development update with limited direct near-term impact on BABA. Article
• Negative Sentiment: Multiple law firms launched or expanded securities-class-action investigations into Alibaba, alleging possible misleading disclosures, which can add legal uncertainty and pressure the shares. Article
• Negative Sentiment: Separate investor alerts from Rosen and Pomerantz may keep litigation concerns in focus and contribute to the stock’s underperformance versus the broader market. Article

Alibaba Group Company Profile

Alibaba Group Holding Limited is a Chinese multinational conglomerate founded in 1999 in Hangzhou, China, by Jack Ma and a group of co?founders. The company built its business around internet-based commerce and related services and has grown into one of the largest e-commerce and technology companies in the world. Alibaba completed a high?profile initial public offering on the New York Stock Exchange in 2014.

The company operates a portfolio of online marketplaces and platforms serving different customer segments: Alibaba.com for global and domestic B2B trade, Taobao for consumer-to-consumer shopping, and Tmall for brand and retailer storefronts targeted at Chinese consumers.