Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) Raised to Strong-Buy at BNP Paribas Exane

Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) was upgraded by investment analysts at BNP Paribas Exane to a “strong-buy” rating in a report released on Wednesday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other equities analysts have also weighed in on BABA. Nomura lifted their price objective on shares of Alibaba Group from $193.00 to $237.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 26th. Barclays cut their price target on Alibaba Group from $190.00 to $186.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 14th. DZ Bank downgraded Alibaba Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $135.00 price objective on the stock. in a research report on Friday, March 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of Alibaba Group from $215.00 to $205.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, March 20th. Finally, Freedom Capital raised shares of Alibaba Group from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have given a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $188.75.

Alibaba Group Stock Performance

Shares of BABA opened at $131.97 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.33, a quick ratio of 1.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22. The firm has a market cap of $315.63 billion, a PE ratio of 24.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 0.50. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $133.05 and its 200-day simple moving average is $151.35. Alibaba Group has a 12-month low of $103.71 and a 12-month high of $192.67.

Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Saturday, February 14th. The specialty retailer reported $0.13 earnings per share for the quarter. Alibaba Group had a net margin of 9.12% and a return on equity of 7.43%. The firm had revenue of $40.71 billion for the quarter. As a group, equities analysts predict that Alibaba Group will post 4.33 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Alibaba Group

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Ameriflex Group Inc. grew its position in Alibaba Group by 101.4% in the third quarter. Ameriflex Group Inc. now owns 143 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 72 shares in the last quarter. Mather Group LLC. purchased a new position in shares of Alibaba Group during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Foster Dykema Cabot & Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Alibaba Group during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $30,000. NBT Bank N A NY lifted its stake in Alibaba Group by 231.5% during the third quarter. NBT Bank N A NY now owns 179 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hoey Investments Inc. lifted its stake in Alibaba Group by 95.2% during the first quarter. Hoey Investments Inc. now owns 205 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 13.47% of the company’s stock.

Alibaba Group News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: BNP Paribas initiated coverage with an “Outperform” rating and a $209 price target — a bullish Wall Street endorsement that can support investor interest and the stock’s upside narrative. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Strong early traction for Alibaba’s enterprise AI products: Accio Work says it now powers ~230,000 online stores — evidence of rapid monetization potential from AI services beyond core e?commerce. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Alibaba launched the HappyHorse AI video model with early developer access via fal — expands Alibaba’s generative AI footprint and could create new platform and cloud revenue streams. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Regulatory approvals and REIT plans for infrastructure/cainiao assets (Hong Kong and Shenzhen go?ahead reported) signal potential value unlocking via asset spin?offs and a clearer capital allocation path. Article Title Article Title Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Time and industry lists (Time100 profile; inclusion on Time’s AI A?list) boost brand and tech credibility, supporting long?term sentiment around Alibaba’s AI/cloud positioning. Article Title Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Alibaba set a May 13 earnings / FY2026 results release — a near?term catalyst that could move shares depending on revenue, cloud margins, and AI monetization commentary. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Coverage pieces are debating valuation after recent share weakness — useful for investors weighing risk/reward but not immediate drivers. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Erste Group cut FY2026 and FY2027 EPS forecasts (FY26 to $4.16, FY27 to $6.37) and kept a “Hold” rating — analyst downgrades may pressure sentiment and lower near?term expectations.
• Negative Sentiment: Some institutional portfolio reshuffling has led to Alibaba being trimmed in certain funds, which can create selling pressure even as the company shifts strategy. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Analysts and articles note domestic e?commerce growth remains less attractive — this structural weakness could limit upside from China retail operations even as cloud/AI improve. Article Title

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.