BABA
Alibaba Group Holding Limited
BABA offers stronger valuation, but that advantage does not outweigh its weaker overall profile.
ROST
Ross Stores, Inc.
ROST has the edge over BABA overall, supported by stronger fundamentals and lower modeled downside.
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.
ROST Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Healthy | |
| Healthy | |
| Healthy | |
| Strong |
ROST's revenue, profitability, cash flow and balance sheet are all currently healthy.
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.
ROST PE Valuation
| Level | PE | Price | Vs current |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cheap | 22x | $178 | -25% |
| Fair | 25x | $210 | -12% |
| Forward | 27x | $237 | — |
| Current | 29x | $237 | — |
| Expensive | 35x | $286 | +21% |
Historical ranges are pointers, not guarantees.
ROST has the edge over BABA in the historical PE scenario, which offers more potential upside but is not a forecast.
BABA Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| -- | |
| Strong growth | |
| Growth | |
| Strongly improving | |
| Limited | |
| Low |
Analysts expect earnings and revenue growth for BABA, with profitability improving. However, they disagree widely on these estimates.
ROST Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| Improving | |
| Growth | |
| Growth | |
| Improving | |
| Limited | |
| High |
Analysts expect earnings and revenue growth for ROST, with profitability improving.
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's earnings per share have fallen from their peak: $4.42 over the past year, against $9.27 in mid-2025. Its recent earnings include one-off gains.
ROST Earnings Per Share
| Quarter | TTM EPS | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Forward | $8.78 | +6.3% |
| Q3 2026 | $8.26 | +31% |
| Q2 2026 | $7.16 | +13% |
| Q1 2026 | $6.61 | +4.6% |
| Q4 2025 | $6.40 | +0.8% |
| Q3 2025 | $6.30 | +1.6% |
| Q2 2025 | $6.33 | +6.7% |
| Q1 2025 | $6.32 | +14% |
| Q4 2024 | $6.35 | +26% |
ROST has the edge over BABA on earnings, with more consistent year-over-year improvement.
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's revenue has grown year over year for 16 quarters in a row: $40.2B last quarter, up 8.3% from the same quarter a year ago.
| 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.
ROST Quarterly Revenue
| Quarter | Revenue | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $6.3B | +13% |
| Q2 2026 | $6B | +21% |
| Q1 2026 | $6.6B | +12% |
| Q4 2025 | $5.6B | +10% |
| Q3 2025 | $5.5B | +4.6% |
| Q2 2025 | $5B | +2.6% |
| Q1 2025 | $5.9B | -1.8% |
| Q4 2024 | $5.1B | +3% |
ROST's revenue has grown year over year for six quarters in a row: $6.3B last quarter, up 13% from the same quarter a year ago.
| Quarter | Margin | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 18% | +6.1 points |
| Q2 2026 | 13% | +1.2 points |
| Q1 2026 | 12% | -0.8 points |
| Q4 2025 | 12% | -1.2 points |
| Q3 2025 | 12% | -1.8 points |
| Q2 2025 | 12% | -0.9 points |
| Q1 2025 | 13% | -0.2 points |
| Q4 2024 | 13% | +0.7 points |
ROST has the edge over BABA on profitability, with a higher operating margin.
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.
ROST Free Cash Flow
| Quarter | Free cash flow | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $624.5M | +34% |
| Q2 2026 | $627.1M | +210% |
| Q1 2026 | $920.8M | +36% |
| Q4 2025 | $617.8M | +86% |
| Q3 2025 | $466.6M | +18% |
| Q2 2025 | $202.3M | -13% |
| Q1 2025 | $676.6M | -6.9% |
| Q4 2024 | $333M | +22% |
ROST has the edge over BABA on cash generation, producing positive trailing cash flow while its opponent burns cash.
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.
ROST Total Shares
| Period | Change % | Net change |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterly | -0.6% | -1.8M shares |
| 1 year | -1.6% | -5.3M shares |
| 3 years | -5.5% | -18.5M shares |
| 5 years | -10% | -35.5M shares |
| Available history | -11% | -39.8M shares |
ROST has the edge over BABA on shareholder dilution, with a more favorable share count trend.
| Quarter | Spent |
|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $318.8M |
| Q2 2026 | $318.8M |
| Q1 2026 | $262.5M |
| Q4 2025 | $262.5M |
| Q3 2025 | $262.5M |
| Q2 2025 | $262.5M |
| Q1 2025 | $262.5M |
| Q4 2024 | $262.5M |
ROST spent $1.2B buying back its own shares over the past year, up 11% from the year before.
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).
ROST Net Leverage
| Quarter | Net Leverage | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | -0.8x | Net Cash |
| Q2 2026 | -0.9x | Net Cash |
| Q1 2026 | -1.0x | Net Cash |
| Q4 2025 | -0.8x | Net Cash |
| Q3 2025 | -0.7x | Net Cash |
| Q2 2025 | -0.7x | Net Cash |
| Q1 2025 | -0.8x | Net Cash |
| Q4 2024 | -0.7x | Net Cash |
ROST has the edge over BABA on leverage, with a lower net debt burden relative to earnings.
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).
ROST Weekly Momentum
| Metric | Value | Status |
|---|---|---|
| RSI | 55.7 | Neutral |
| Stochastic | 33.0 | Neutral |
ROST's weekly RSI is 56 (neutral) and its Stochastic is 33 (neutral).
BABA PE vs Consumer Cyclical Sector
| Metric | BABA | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 21x | 18x | 19% above |
| PE % | 60 | 47 | 13 pts above |
BABA has the edge over ROST on valuation relative to its sector.
ROST PE vs Consumer Cyclical Sector
| Metric | ROST | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 29x | 18x | 59% above |
| PE % | 68 | 47 | 21 pts above |
ROST is trading at 29x earnings, a 59% premium to the Consumer Cyclical sector's median of 18x.
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.
ROST Weekly Moving Averages
| Moving average | MA price | Relative |
|---|---|---|
| 8 week MA | $231.2 | 2.6% above |
| 20 week MA | $233.3 | 1.7% above |
| 50 week MA | $218.3 | 8.7% above |
| 100 week MA | $181.3 | 31% above |
| 200 week MA | $155.3 | 53% above |
ROST has the edge over BABA on trend strength, trading above more of its moving averages.
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.
ROST Yearly ROI
| Year | Start price | End price | ROI |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $115.0 | $118.0 | +2.7% |
| 2021 | $118.0 | $110.2 | -6.7% |
| 2022 | $110.2 | $115.5 | +4.8% |
| 2023 | $115.5 | $138.4 | +20% |
| 2024 | $138.4 | $153.0 | +11% |
| 2025 | $153.0 | $181.1 | +18% |
| 2026 YTD | $181.1 | $237.2 | +31% |
ROST has the edge over BABA on returns for 2026, with the stronger performance.