UPDATE: Deutsche Bank Initiates Coverage On Alibaba On Positive Outlook

In a report published Wednesday, Deutsche Bank analyst Alan Hellawell III initiated coverage on

with a Buy rating and $112.70 price target. In the report, Deutsche Bank noted, “Alibaba marked the first stage of its evolution with the roll-out of a largely unmonetized and highly scalable platform. Similar to its peers, with scale firmly established, we see Alibaba pursuing ever deeper forms of monetization through business model shift, heightened competition for the advertising tools on its platform, and the introduction of a growing array of valuable ancillary services. We initiate coverage with a Buy in expectation of further secular growth from core e-commerce, and view largely M&A-driven diversification as potential options to the business.” Alibaba Group Holding Ltd closed on Tuesday at $99.68.