Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) Stock Rating Upgraded by Zacks Research

Key Points

• Zacks Research upgraded Alibaba from “strong sell” to “hold,” adding to a generally more constructive analyst tone around the stock.
• Several other firms have recently raised ratings or price targets, and the consensus view now stands at Moderate Buy with an average target price of $188.76.
• Alibaba shares were down 2.5% in the session described, and the company continues to draw attention for its expanding AI and cloud initiatives, including Qwen and new enterprise partnerships.

Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA - Get Free Report) was upgraded by research analysts at Zacks Research from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report released on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other research firms have also recently weighed in on BABA. Argus upgraded Alibaba Group to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 24th. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Alibaba Group from $180.00 to $190.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 14th. Barclays upped their target price on Alibaba Group from $186.00 to $195.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 14th. Susquehanna upped their price target on Alibaba Group from $170.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a "positive" rating in a research report on Friday, May 15th. Finally, HSBC upped their price target on Alibaba Group from $172.00 to $180.00 in a research report on Thursday, May 14th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have given a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $188.76.

Alibaba Group Stock Down 2.5%

Shares of NYSE:BABA opened at $127.49 on Tuesday. 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 has a 1 year low of $103.71 and a 1 year high of $192.67. The stock has a market capitalization of $305.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.93, a PEG ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 0.47. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $131.01 and a 200-day simple moving average of $145.72.

Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, March 31st. The specialty retailer reported $0.01 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. The business had revenue of $35.30 billion during the quarter. Alibaba Group had a return on equity of 4.76% and a net margin of 10.31%. Equities analysts forecast that Alibaba Group will post 6.75 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Alibaba Group

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. ARK Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Alibaba Group during the third quarter valued at about $37,565,000. Great Hill Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Alibaba Group during the third quarter valued at $2,207,000. Jennison Associates LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Alibaba Group by 11.9% during the fourth quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 54,235 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $7,950,000 after purchasing an additional 5,760 shares during the last quarter. Thornburg Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Alibaba Group by 14.3% during the third quarter. Thornburg Investment Management Inc. now owns 553,384 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $98,906,000 after purchasing an additional 69,232 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Eurizon Capital SGR S.p.A. purchased a new stake in shares of Alibaba Group during the fourth quarter valued at $21,266,000. 13.47% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Key Alibaba Group News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Alibaba is expanding its Qwen AI platform into commerce use cases, including ordering and payments inside chat, which could deepen user engagement and create new monetization opportunities. Alibaba Opens Qwen To Brands – Aims To Build AI-Powered Commerce Network
• Positive Sentiment: The company unveiled a major AI stack overhaul and continued to expand its Qwen model family, signaling stronger cloud and AI revenue potential; Benchmark also reaffirmed its Buy rating. Alibaba (BABA) Expands AI Capabilities as Benchmark Reaffirms Buy Rating
• Positive Sentiment: Alibaba announced a multi-year UEFA partnership covering AI, cloud computing, and e-commerce, giving the company a high-profile international showcase for its technology stack. Alibaba Group partners with UEFA Men’s Club Competitions from 2027/28 to 2032/33 and UEFA EURO 2028
• Positive Sentiment: Alibaba Cloud signed new AI-focused partnerships, including with Manulife Hong Kong and Singapore tourism-related initiatives, which may support adoption of its enterprise AI services. Manulife Hong Kong and Alibaba Cloud Sign Strategic Partnership to Accelerate and Scale AI Innovation
• Neutral Sentiment: Alibaba confirmed a routine share-capital update and public float compliance in May 2026, which appears administrative rather than a major operating catalyst. Alibaba Reports Modest Share Increase and Confirms Public Float Compliance in May 2026
• Neutral Sentiment: Several articles note unchanged analyst price targets and broader investor attention on Alibaba’s evolving AI story, suggesting sentiment is constructive but not driven by a single new financial update. How Alibaba Group Holding (BABA) The Evolving Story Connects To Unchanged Analyst Price Targets
• Negative Sentiment: Some investors may view the latest AI rollouts as still early-stage and costly to commercialize, especially since newer Qwen models remain proprietary and closed-API only. Alibaba's Qwen3.7-Plus supports text, video and imagery inputs at low cost of $0.4/$1.6 per 1M token — but it's proprietary

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.

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