By Jason Chau


Shares of Alibaba's healthcare arm notched another day of double-digit gains, benefiting from investor optimism that it is well-placed to benefit from the use of AI in the sector.

Alibaba Health Information Technology's stock closed 19% higher in Hong Kong on Wednesday, on track for its best monthly performance since February last year.

Analysts say the gains are linked to the broader rally in artificial intelligence-linked stocks, noting that AliHealth's ties to parent Alibaba put it in prime position to cash in on AI adoption in China's healthcare industry.

"AliHealth has dominant traffic advantage and partnership opportunities with sister companies, as well as strength in AI development," Citi analysts said in a note, expecting a strong year ahead for the company.

For example, Alibaba affiliate Ant Group has recently launched a digital health consultation app that may offer some traffic benefits to other group companies, even though they are separate entities that operate independently, said Cui Cui, Jefferies's head of Asia healthcare research.

AliHealth is UOB Kay Hian's top pick in the sector, analysts Carol Dou and Sunny Chen wrote in a note. They cited tailwinds including strong earnings growth, improving operating efficiency with AI adoption, integration with Alibaba's marketing business, and attractive valuations.

Shares of AliHealth parent Alibaba Group ended the day 5.7% higher.


Write to Jason Chau at jason.chau@wsj.com


(END) Dow Jones Newswires

01-14-26 0413ET