Vipshop Holdings Limited (NYSE:VIPS) Given Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Vipshop Holdings Limited (NYSE:VIPS) has been assigned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the four research firms that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and two have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price target among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $21.60.

Several research firms have commented on VIPS. Benchmark lowered shares of Vipshop from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday. Citigroup dropped their price objective on Vipshop from $25.00 to $20.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday. StockNews.com downgraded Vipshop from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, May 13th. Finally, HSBC lowered their target price on Vipshop from $22.90 to $19.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, March 28th.

Vipshop Stock Performance

VIPS stock opened at $15.94 on Friday. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $16.39 and its 200 day simple moving average is $16.44. Vipshop has a 52 week low of $13.80 and a 52 week high of $20.19. The company has a market capitalization of $8.64 billion, a PE ratio of 7.41 and a beta of 0.44.

Vipshop (NYSE:VIPS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 28th. The technology company reported $5.79 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.64 by $5.15. Vipshop had a net margin of 7.60% and a return on equity of 23.74%. The business had revenue of $34.67 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $33.18 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.47 earnings per share. Vipshop’s revenue was up 9.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts forecast that Vipshop will post 2.24 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Vipshop

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Cetera Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Vipshop during the 1st quarter valued at about $232,000. Swedbank AB bought a new stake in shares of Vipshop during the 1st quarter valued at about $19,185,000. California State Teachers Retirement System boosted its position in shares of Vipshop by 18.0% during the 1st quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 178,624 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $2,956,000 after purchasing an additional 27,270 shares in the last quarter. Virtus Investment Advisers Inc. boosted its position in shares of Vipshop by 5.4% during the 1st quarter. Virtus Investment Advisers Inc. now owns 167,106 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $2,766,000 after purchasing an additional 8,488 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bayesian Capital Management LP bought a new position in Vipshop in the first quarter worth approximately $515,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 48.82% of the company’s stock.

About Vipshop

Vipshop Holdings Limited operates online platforms in the People's Republic of China. It operates in Vip.com, Shan Shan Outlets, and Others segments. The company offers womenswear, menswear, sportswear and sporting goods, shoes and bags, accessories, baby and children products, skincare and cosmetics, home goods and other lifestyle products, and supermarket products.