Here's How Alibaba Scooped Bullish Rating Amid Surging COVID Cases, Regulatory Crackdown

Alibaba Group Holding Ltd BABA shares have battled the double whammy of the pandemic resurgence and regulatory crackdown on leading Chinese companies.
Goldman Sachs analyst Piyush Mubayi reiterated a Buy and set a price target of $185 (78.7% upside).
Mubayi counted on Alibaba's record-high share buyback program to improve its balance sheet.
Many Wall Street experts remain bullish on the Chinese e-commerce giant's solid business fundamentals.
Due to the looming crisis, HSBC, Citi, and Benchmark analysts slashed their price targets on Alibaba.
China recently cracked down upon abuse of algorithms by internet giants and questioned Alibaba and others over their job cuts.
Daily confirmed cases in Shanghai surged above 25,000 on April 10, a record since the March 28 citywide lockdown, hurting industries, SCMP reports. New infections have also emerged in Guangzhou, leading to a partial lockdown in the capital of southern Guangdong province.
The report quoted an analyst saying, "There's still a chance that stocks will test a new low."
Government reports revealed inflation accelerated faster than expected last month, limiting room for policy loosening.
The report further noted Goldman Sachs Effective Lockdown Index saw a 3.25% hit to global GDP as of the first week of April, well below a peak of 20% about two years ago. However, China's reading remained high.
Price Action: BABA shares traded lower by 2.01% at $101.45 in the premarket on the last check Monday.