Alibaba Group Holding Limited (HK:9988) announced today that its CEO, Eddie Wu, will assume leadership of its domestic e-commerce arm, the Taobao and Tmall Group (TTG). Wu replaces Trudy Dai in the latest organizational reshuffle, which adds to his existing responsibility as the head of Alibaba Group and its cloud computing business. Dai, who assumed the role of CEO of Taobao and Tmall in March, will step aside to contribute to the establishment of an asset management company for Alibaba.
Alibaba’s shares traded up by 2.65% in today’s trading session.
Alibaba is a Chinese technology company widely known for its online marketplace.
Restructuring Efforts to Reclaim Dominance
The move comes as part of the company’s restructuring efforts to regain its competitive ground in the industry. Earlier in December, Alibaba temporarily lost its top spot in market value as an e-commerce leader to PDD Holdings (NASDAQ:PDD), indicating the intense rivalry in the industry. As a result, analyst Gary Yu from Morgan Stanley downgraded his rating on the stock from Buy to Hold, citing a “slower-than-expected turnaround.”
Wu’s dual leadership of Alibaba Cloud and TTG is expected to ensure more focus on the company’s core businesses of cloud computing and e-commerce. The management shakeup also marks an overhaul of Taobao and Tmall’s operations, with more emphasis on consumer services and experiences.
Is Alibaba a Good Stock to Buy Now?
Alibaba’s stock has experienced a decrease of around 18% year-to-date. Overall, analysts remain bullish on the stock, especially after its performance in the first half of FY24. The company posted a strong set of numbers, with a 9% jump in its Fiscal Q2 revenues compared to last year.
On TipRanks, 9988 stock has a Strong Buy rating based on six Buys and one Hold recommendation. The Alibaba share price target is HK$124.34, which shows a potential growth rate of 74% on the current trading price.
