Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) Shares Down 1.9% – Here’s Why

Shares of Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA) traded down 1.9% during trading on Friday . The company traded as low as $152.86 and last traded at $155.7370. 15,993,979 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 16% from the average session volume of 13,799,857 shares. The stock had previously closed at $158.73.

Key Headlines Impacting Alibaba Group

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

• Positive Sentiment: Strong customer demand for Alibaba’s AI offerings — the company’s Qwen-driven shopping campaigns generated very large order volumes and its new RynnBrain embodied-AI model is drawing industry attention, supporting revenue and ecosystem growth. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Strategic AI and robotics partnerships and product placements (e.g., robotics integrations, Olympics cloud/AI usage) expand addressable markets beyond core commerce. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: International commercial push: India is partnering with Alibaba.com to boost exports, showing continued customer/partner traction outside China. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Regulatory/legal housekeeping: Alibaba filed a U.S. Form 13F disclosing institutional holdings — useful transparency but not directly directional. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Brand/marketing activations (e.g., immersive AI experience in Milan) help visibility but have limited immediate revenue impact. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: U.S. government expected to add Alibaba to a Pentagon-linked list of firms allegedly aiding China’s military — a major near-term catalyst that triggered investor concern and increased regulatory/geopolitical risk premium. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Ongoing securities-fraud investigation publicity (law-firm outreach) keeps legal risk visible to investors and can amplify selling pressure. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Financial/operational headwinds — slowing growth in core commerce and a large capex surge that has pushed free cash flow negative are raising near-term profit concerns. Read More.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Macquarie Infrastructure restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Alibaba Group in a research report on Tuesday, November 25th. Mizuho set a $195.00 target price on Alibaba Group in a report on Wednesday, October 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group cut their target price on Alibaba Group from $231.00 to $225.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. Loop Capital set a $140.00 price target on Alibaba Group in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. Finally, Arete Research raised shares of Alibaba Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $190.00 price objective for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Eighteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Alibaba Group presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $195.17.

Alibaba Group Trading Down 1.9%

The firm has a market cap of $371.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.41 and a beta of 0.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a quick ratio of 1.46 and a current ratio of 1.46. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $159.17 and a 200 day moving average price of $155.20.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Alibaba Group

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in BABA. Ameriflex Group Inc. lifted its stake in Alibaba Group by 101.4% during the third quarter. Ameriflex Group Inc. now owns 143 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 72 shares in the last quarter. Mather Group LLC. purchased a new stake in shares of Alibaba Group in the 3rd quarter valued at $30,000. Foster Dykema Cabot & Partners LLC acquired a new position in Alibaba Group during the 3rd quarter worth about $30,000. NBT Bank N A NY boosted its holdings in Alibaba Group by 231.5% during the 3rd quarter. NBT Bank N A NY now owns 179 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 125 shares during the period. Finally, Palisade Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Alibaba Group in the 3rd quarter valued at about $37,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 13.47% of the company’s stock.

About Alibaba Group

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.