New | Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba boosted by analysts’ target prices uplift

Shares of Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba Group Holding rose 2.2 per cent to US$81.20 midday on Wednesday in New York after brokerages raised their target prices on the stock following its better-than-expected quarterly results announced a day earlier.

Brokerages including Brean, Deutsche Bank, Jefferies, Barclays and Evercore ISI raised their target prices, Reuters reported, following Alibaba’s strong quarterly sales and profit growth that defied the economic slowdown in China.

Qunar, a Chinese travel search engine operator controlled by Baidu, slumped 6.6 per cent to US$44.40 following two consecutive days of strong gains on the back of its shares-swap merger with rival Ctrip.com International.

Ctrip, China’s biggest online travel agency that will own 45 per cent of Qunar, edged up 0.87 per cent to US$89.40.

Baidu, operator of China’s biggest search engine, which will own a 25 per cent voting interest in Ctrip, slid 2 per cent to US$170.30.

Netease, one of China’s largest internet companies, gained 0.04 per cent to US$142.60, after it announced on Tuesday that its Netease Capital Venture unit has invested US$2.5 million into privately held Helsinki-based game studio Reforged Studios.