NewEdge Advisors LLC Boosts Stock Position in Alibaba Group Holding Limited $BABA

Key Points

• NewEdge Advisors increased its Alibaba stake by 35.2% in the second quarter, adding 57,725 shares for a total of 221,809 shares valued at approximately $21.3 million. Institutional investors collectively own 13.47% of the stock.
• Alibaba’s latest quarterly revenue rose 8.6% year over year to $39.64 billion, slightly exceeding estimates, but earnings per share of $1.26 missed consensus by $0.68. Shares opened at $108.55, well below their 52-week high of $192.67.
• The company’s AI expansion—including investments in startups and commercial applications for its Wan3.0 and Accio tools—offers long-term growth potential, while rising spending, possible U.S. restrictions and securities litigation create near-term risks. Analysts maintain a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating with an average price target of $187.45.

NewEdge Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA - Free Report) by 35.2% in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 221,809 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after acquiring an additional 57,725 shares during the period. NewEdge Advisors LLC's holdings in Alibaba Group were worth $21,289,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in BABA. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. increased its position in shares of Alibaba Group by 7,680.3% during the fourth quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 6,014,147 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $881,554,000 after buying an additional 5,936,847 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Alibaba Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $594,477,000. Altshuler Shaham Ltd bought a new position in shares of Alibaba Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $160,410,000. Third Point LLC purchased a new position in Alibaba Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $120,928,000. Finally, Bbfit Investments PTE Ltd. bought a new stake in Alibaba Group during the fourth quarter valued at $106,828,000. 13.47% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Alibaba Group Stock Down 0.8%

Shares of NYSE BABA opened at $108.55 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $269.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.28, a PEG ratio of 1.44 and a beta of 0.51. Alibaba Group Holding Limited has a one year low of $91.99 and a one year high of $192.67. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $117.35 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $123.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 1.36 and a quick ratio of 1.36.

Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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). The business had revenue of $39.64 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $39.52 billion. Alibaba Group had a net margin of 7.00% and a return on equity of 4.79%. Alibaba Group's revenue for the quarter was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $14.75 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Alibaba Group Holding Limited will post 5.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Alibaba Group News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: Alibaba is reportedly considering leading a $300 million funding round for AI startup UniPat at a $2.5 billion valuation, highlighting its continued push to expand its AI ecosystem. Alibaba reportedly slated to lead $300M round in AI startup UniPat at $2.5B valuation
• Positive Sentiment: Alibaba’s Wan3.0 AI model is being used by iQIYI in a global creator challenge for professional film and television production, providing evidence of commercial applications for its generative AI technology. iQIYI Advances Professional AI Filmmaking with Wan3.0
• Positive Sentiment: Alibaba.com said its Accio commerce AI agent completed benchmark tasks at more than 50% lower estimated cost than competing tools from OpenAI and Anthropic, potentially supporting adoption among small and medium-sized businesses. Alibaba's Accio Cuts AI Costs
• Neutral Sentiment: Alibaba’s broader AI-and-cloud strategy remains a potential long-term growth driver, but substantial AI investment and rising capital expenditures could weigh on near-term cash flow.
• Negative Sentiment: U.S. officials are reportedly framing AI “distillation”—the process of transferring capabilities from one model to another—as a security and geopolitical issue involving Alibaba’s Qwen models. Investors fear tighter restrictions could limit access to technology, customers and international markets. Alibaba Drops as Washington Turns AI Distillation Into Geopolitical Risk
• Negative Sentiment: Multiple law firms are promoting a securities-fraud class action covering investors who purchased Alibaba securities from June 26, 2025, through June 24, 2026. The allegations include undisclosed Chinese military ties and misleading statements about AI distillation activities; the lead-plaintiff deadline is October 5, 2026. The claims remain allegations, but the litigation adds reputational, legal and potential financial risk. Kaplan Fox Alibaba securities class action notice

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Alibaba Group from $205.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, August 21st. Weiss Ratings downgraded Alibaba Group from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research report on Friday, September 4th. Zacks Research raised Alibaba Group from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 2nd. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Alibaba Group from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, May 23rd. Finally, HSBC set a $170.00 target price on shares of Alibaba Group in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $187.45.

Insider Buying and Selling at Alibaba Group

In other news, President J. Evans sold 720,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $94.95, for a total transaction of $68,364,000.00. Following the transaction, the president directly owned 28,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,658,600. This trade represents a 96.26% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, General Counsel Siying Yu sold 6,772 shares of Alibaba Group stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $12.10, for a total value of $81,941.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the general counsel owned 607,234 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,347,531.40. This represents a 1.10% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 920,303 shares of company stock valued at $70,796,370. 12.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Alibaba Group Company Profile

Alibaba Group Holding Limited is a global technology and commerce company founded in 1999 by Jack Ma and a group of co-founders. Headquartered in Hangzhou, China, the company operates a broad ecosystem of businesses serving consumers, merchants, brands and enterprises.

Its core businesses include online and mobile commerce platforms such as Taobao and Tmall in China, as well as international marketplaces including AliExpress and Lazada. Alibaba also provides wholesale commerce, cross-border retail, logistics through Cainiao, local consumer services, digital media and entertainment, and other consumer-focused technology services.

Alibaba Cloud provides cloud computing, data storage, artificial intelligence and related technology solutions to businesses and organizations.

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