AEO
American Eagle Outfitters, Inc.
AEO has the edge over BABA overall, supported by stronger fundamentals and stronger valuation.
BABA
Alibaba Group Holding Limited
BABA has slightly lower modeled downside risk, despite its lower overall score.
AEO Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Stable | |
| Healthy | |
| Healthy | |
| Strong |
AEO's profitability, cash flow and balance sheet are currently healthy, and its revenue is stable.
BABA Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Stable | |
| Under pressure | |
| Weak | |
| Healthy |
BABA's balance sheet is currently healthy, and its revenue is stable, but its profitability and cash flow are under pressure.
AEO PE Valuation
| Level | PE | Price | Vs current |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cheap | 8.9x | $17.27 | -20% |
| Forward | 10x | $21.67 | — |
| Current | 11x | $21.67 | — |
| Fair | 15x | $29.33 | +35% |
| Expensive | 22x | $42.36 | +95% |
Historical ranges are pointers, not guarantees.
AEO has the edge over BABA in the historical PE scenario, which offers more potential upside but is not a forecast.
BABA PE Valuation
| Level | PE | Price | Vs current |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cheap | 16x | $69.66 | -26% |
| Fair | 20x | $86.59 | -8.2% |
| Current | 21x | $94.36 | — |
| Expensive | 26x | $115 | +22% |
Historical ranges are pointers, not guarantees.
BABA's PE is 21x, but its earnings don't support one, so it isn't a reliable read right now.
AEO Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| Improving | |
| Growth | |
| Stable | |
| Improving | |
| Limited | |
| High |
Analysts expect AEO's earnings to grow and its profitability to improve, with its revenue holding steady.
BABA Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| -- | |
| Strong growth | |
| Growth | |
| Strongly improving | |
| Limited | |
| Low |
BABA has the edge over AEO on the outlook, with more favorable revenue expectations.
AEO Earnings Per Share
| Quarter | TTM EPS | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Forward | $2.13 | +11% |
| Q3 2026 | $1.93 | +86% |
| Q2 2026 | $1.59 | +62% |
| Q1 2026 | $1.09 | -35% |
| Q4 2025 | $1.16 | -0.9% |
| Q3 2025 | $1.04 | -17% |
| Q2 2025 | $0.98 | -12% |
| Q1 2025 | $1.68 | +95% |
| Q4 2024 | $1.17 | +3.5% |
AEO earned $1.93 per share over the past year, up 86% from the year before.
BABA Earnings Per Share
| Quarter | TTM EPS | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q2 2026 | $4.42 | -52% |
| Q1 2026 | $6.57 | -18% |
| Q4 2025 | $5.79 | -22% |
| Q3 2025 | $7.85 | +49% |
| Q2 2025 | $9.27 | +116% |
| Q1 2025 | $8.06 | +71% |
| Q4 2024 | $7.47 | +24% |
| Q3 2024 | $5.26 | -35% |
BABA has the edge over AEO on earnings, with stronger typical year-over-year growth.
AEO Quarterly Revenue
| Quarter | Revenue | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $1.4B | +7.5% |
| Q2 2026 | $1.2B | +9.7% |
| Q1 2026 | $1.8B | +13% |
| Q4 2025 | $1.4B | +5.7% |
| Q3 2025 | $1.3B | -0.6% |
| Q2 2025 | $1.1B | -4.7% |
| Q1 2025 | $1.6B | -4.4% |
| Q4 2024 | $1.3B | -0.9% |
AEO's revenue has grown year over year for four quarters in a row: $1.4B last quarter, up 7.5% from the same quarter a year ago.
| Quarter | Margin | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 15% | +7.3 points |
| Q2 2026 | 2.4% | +10 points |
| Q1 2026 | 5.3% | -3.6 points |
| Q4 2025 | 8.3% | 0 points |
| Q3 2025 | 8% | +0.2 points |
| Q2 2025 | -7.8% | -15 points |
| Q1 2025 | 8.9% | +8.3 points |
| Q4 2024 | 8.2% | -1.4 points |
AEO has the edge over BABA on profitability, with a higher operating margin.
BABA Quarterly Revenue
| Quarter | Revenue | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q2 2026 | $40.2B | +8.3% |
| Q1 2026 | $36.5B | +2.9% |
| Q4 2025 | $42.7B | +1.7% |
| Q3 2025 | $37.2B | +4.8% |
| Q2 2025 | $37.2B | +1.8% |
| Q1 2025 | $35.5B | +6.6% |
| Q4 2024 | $42B | +7.6% |
| Q3 2024 | $35.5B | +5.2% |
BABA has the edge over AEO on sales, with more consistent year-over-year improvement.
| Quarter | Margin | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q2 2026 | 7.2% | -6.9 points |
| Q1 2026 | -0.3% | -12 points |
| Q4 2025 | 7.1% | -7.6 points |
| Q3 2025 | 2.2% | -13 points |
| Q2 2025 | 14% | -0.7 points |
| Q1 2025 | 12% | +5.4 points |
| Q4 2024 | 15% | +6.1 points |
| Q3 2024 | 15% | 0 points |
BABA's operating margin was 7.2% last quarter, down 6.9 points from the same quarter a year ago.
AEO Free Cash Flow
| Quarter | Free cash flow | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $115.3M | +$158.5M |
| Q2 2026 | -$126.6M | -$10.4M |
| Q1 2026 | $357.3M | +12% |
| Q4 2025 | -$2.5M | +$5.3M |
| Q3 2025 | -$43.1M | -346% |
| Q2 2025 | -$116.3M | -$42M |
| Q1 2025 | $318.9M | +24% |
| Q4 2024 | -$7.8M | -108% |
AEO has the edge over BABA on cash generation, producing positive trailing cash flow while its opponent burns cash.
BABA Free Cash Flow
| Quarter | Free cash flow | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q2 2026 | -$6.7B | -$4.1B |
| Q1 2026 | -$2.7B | +$1.5B |
| Q4 2025 | $1B | -90% |
| Q3 2025 | -$3.2B | -254% |
| Q2 2025 | -$2.7B | -182% |
| Q1 2025 | -$4.2B | -12231% |
| Q4 2024 | $10.4B | -4.8% |
| Q3 2024 | $2.1B | -62% |
BABA's free cash flow has turned negative after years in the green: −$11.6B over the past year.
AEO Total Shares
| Period | Change % | Net change |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterly | -1.3% | -2.2M shares |
| 1 year | -0.9% | -1.5M shares |
| 3 years | -14% | -27M shares |
| 5 years | -18% | -36.4M shares |
| Available history | +0.9% | +1.5M shares |
AEO has the edge over BABA on shareholder dilution, with a more favorable share count trend.
| Quarter | Spent |
|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | — |
| Q2 2026 | $53.5M |
| Q1 2026 | $25.6M |
| Q4 2025 | — |
| Q3 2025 | — |
| Q2 2025 | $31.3M |
| Q1 2025 | $60M |
| Q4 2024 | — |
AEO spent $79M buying back its own shares over the past year, down 13% from the year before.
BABA Total Shares
| Period | Change % | Net change |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterly | +0.5% | +11.1M shares |
| 1 year | +0.9% | +21.4M shares |
| 3 years | -6.2% | -161M shares |
| 5 years | -12% | -339M shares |
| Available history | -8.4% | -221M shares |
BABA has 2.4B diluted shares, up 0.9% from a year ago.
| Quarter | Spent |
|---|---|
| Q2 2026 | — |
| Q1 2026 | — |
| Q4 2025 | — |
| Q3 2025 | $269.8M |
| Q2 2025 | — |
| Q1 2025 | — |
| Q4 2024 | — |
| Q3 2024 | — |
BABA spent $270M buying back its own shares over the past year, after none the year before.
AEO Net Leverage
| Quarter | Net Leverage | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | -0.1x | Net Cash |
| Q2 2026 | -0.0x | Net Cash |
| Q1 2026 | -0.5x | Net Cash |
| Q4 2025 | 0.2x | Very low |
| Q3 2025 | 0.2x | Very low |
| Q2 2025 | 0.1x | Very low |
| Q1 2025 | -0.5x | Net Cash |
| Q4 2024 | -0.3x | Net Cash |
AEO has the edge over BABA on leverage, with a lower net debt burden relative to earnings.
BABA Net Leverage
| Quarter | Net Leverage | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Q2 2026 | 0.5x | Very low |
| Q1 2026 | 0.5x | Very low |
| Q4 2025 | 0.6x | Very low |
| Q3 2025 | 0.8x | Very low |
| Q2 2025 | 0.2x | Very low |
| Q1 2025 | 0.3x | Very low |
| Q4 2024 | 0.1x | Very low |
| Q3 2024 | -0.2x | Net Cash |
BABA's net debt is less than a year of its operating earnings (EBITDA).
AEO Weekly Momentum
| Metric | Value | Status |
|---|---|---|
| RSI | 65.7 | Neutral |
| Stochastic | 85.9 | Overbought |
AEO's weekly RSI is 66 (neutral) and its Stochastic is 86 (overbought).
BABA Weekly Momentum
| Metric | Value | Status |
|---|---|---|
| RSI | 38.0 | Neutral |
| Stochastic | 12.7 | Oversold |
BABA's weekly RSI is 38 (neutral) and its Stochastic is 13 (oversold).
AEO PE vs Consumer Cyclical Sector
| Metric | AEO | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 11x | 18x | 38% below |
| PE % | 32 | 47 | 15 pts below |
AEO has the edge over BABA on valuation relative to its sector.
BABA PE vs Consumer Cyclical Sector
| Metric | BABA | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 21x | 18x | 19% above |
| PE % | 60 | 47 | 13 pts above |
BABA is trading at 21x earnings, a 19% premium to the Consumer Cyclical sector's median of 18x, though its earnings don't support one.
AEO Weekly Moving Averages
| Moving average | MA price | Relative |
|---|---|---|
| 8 week MA | $18.7 | 16% above |
| 20 week MA | $17.4 | 24% above |
| 50 week MA | $19.4 | 12% above |
| 100 week MA | $16.6 | 30% above |
| 200 week MA | $17.4 | 24% above |
AEO has the edge over BABA on trend strength, trading above more of its moving averages.
BABA Weekly Moving Averages
| Moving average | MA price | Relative |
|---|---|---|
| 8 week MA | $104.7 | 9.9% below |
| 20 week MA | $111.1 | 15% below |
| 50 week MA | $128.0 | 26% below |
| 100 week MA | $127.7 | 26% below |
| 200 week MA | $106.4 | 11% below |
BABA is in a downtrend: it's below all five of its weekly moving averages, and 11% below its 200-week average.
AEO Yearly ROI
| Year | Start price | End price | ROI |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $14.5 | $19.8 | +37% |
| 2021 | $19.8 | $23.3 | +17% |
| 2022 | $23.3 | $14.6 | -37% |
| 2023 | $14.6 | $21.2 | +45% |
| 2024 | $21.2 | $16.5 | -22% |
| 2025 | $16.5 | $26.4 | +60% |
| 2026 YTD | $26.4 | $21.7 | -18% |
AEO has the edge over BABA on returns for 2026, with the stronger performance.
BABA Yearly ROI
| Year | Start price | End price | ROI |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $215.5 | $222.0 | +3% |
| 2021 | $222.0 | $118.7 | -47% |
| 2022 | $118.7 | $85.7 | -28% |
| 2023 | $85.7 | $77.5 | -9.5% |
| 2024 | $77.5 | $85.1 | +9.7% |
| 2025 | $85.1 | $152.2 | +79% |
| 2026 YTD | $152.2 | $94.4 | -38% |
BABA has finished lower in three of the last six years. It's down 38% so far in 2026.