Alibaba (BABA) Falls More Steeply Than Broader Market: What Investors Need to Know

In the latest trading session, Alibaba (BABA) closed at $181.33, marking a -3.15% move from the previous day. The stock trailed the S&P 500, which registered a daily loss of 0.38%. Elsewhere, the Dow saw a downswing of 0.2%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq depreciated by 0.67%. Shares of the online retailer have appreciated by 32.59% over the course of the past month, outperforming the Retail-Wholesale sector's loss of 2.39%, and the S&P 500's gain of 4.06%.The investment community will be closely monitoring the performance of Alibaba in its forthcoming earnings report. The company's earnings per share (EPS) are projected to be $1.04, reflecting a 51.63% decrease from the same quarter last year. Simultaneously, our latest consensus estimate expects the revenue to be $34.15 billion, showing a 1.32% escalation compared to the year-ago quarter. For the full year, the Zacks Consensus Estimates are projecting earnings of $7.55 per share and revenue of $144.39 billion, which would represent changes of -16.2% and +4.53%, respectively, from the prior year. Any recent changes to analyst estimates for Alibaba should also be noted by investors. These recent revisions tend to reflect the evolving nature of short-term business trends. As a result, we can interpret positive estimate revisions as a good sign for the business outlook. Our research shows that these estimate changes are directly correlated with near-term stock prices. Investors can capitalize on this by using the Zacks Rank. This model considers these estimate changes and provides a simple, actionable rating system. Ranging from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), the Zacks Rank system has a proven, outside-audited track record of outperformance, with #1 stocks returning an average of +25% annually since 1988. Over the past month, the Zacks Consensus EPS estimate has moved 7.05% lower. Alibaba is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold). In terms of valuation, Alibaba is currently trading at a Forward P/E ratio of 24.81. This signifies a premium in comparison to the average Forward P/E of 21.5 for its industry. Also, we should mention that BABA has a PEG ratio of 2.01. The PEG ratio bears resemblance to the frequently used P/E ratio, but this parameter also includes the company's expected earnings growth trajectory. The Internet - Commerce industry had an average PEG ratio of 1.44 as trading concluded yesterday. The Internet - Commerce industry is part of the Retail-Wholesale sector. Currently, this industry holds a Zacks Industry Rank of 38, positioning it in the top 16% of all 250+ industries. The strength of our individual industry groups is measured by the Zacks Industry Rank, which is calculated based on the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within these groups. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1. Don't forget to use Zacks.com to keep track of all these stock-moving metrics, and others, in the upcoming trading sessions. 5 Stocks Set to DoubleEach was handpicked by a Zacks expert as the #1 favorite stock to gain +100% or more in the coming year. While not all picks can be winners, previous recommendations have soared +112%, +171%, +209% and +232%.Most of the stocks in this report are flying under Wall Street radar, which provides a great opportunity to get in on the ground floor.Today, See These 5 Potential Home Runs >>Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report Alibaba Group Holding Limited (BABA): Free Stock Analysis ReportThis article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).Zacks Investment ResearchWeiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Zacks Weiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Zacks