Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) Trading Down 3.4% – Time to Sell?

Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA) traded down 3.4% on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $156.96 and last traded at $158.7370. 11,373,781 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 17% from the average session volume of 13,720,637 shares. The stock had previously closed at $164.32.

Key Stories 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.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently weighed in on BABA shares. Jefferies Financial Group cut their target price on shares of Alibaba Group from $231.00 to $225.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on shares of Alibaba Group from $200.00 to $180.00 and set an “overweight” 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 research note on Tuesday, January 6th. Arete Research raised Alibaba Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $190.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, Citigroup raised their target price on Alibaba Group from $218.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 26th. Eighteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $195.17.

Alibaba Group Trading Down 1.9%

The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $159.17 and its 200 day simple moving average is $154.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 1.46 and a quick ratio of 1.46. The company has a market capitalization of $371.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.48 and a beta of 0.39.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Ameriflex Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of 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 stake in Alibaba Group in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Foster Dykema Cabot & Partners LLC acquired a new position in Alibaba Group during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $30,000. NBT Bank N A NY lifted its holdings in shares of Alibaba Group by 231.5% in the 3rd quarter. NBT Bank N A NY now owns 179 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 125 shares during the period. Finally, Palisade Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Alibaba Group in the third quarter valued at approximately $37,000. 13.47% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.