Investor enthusiasm for Alibaba Holdings Group continues unabated with the stock closing at HK204.00 (US$26.06), up 5.59%, on Thursday, its third day of trading at the Hong Kong Stock Exchange (HKSE).
The stock opened at HK197 (US$25.16) and hit an intraday high of HK204. It closed Wednesday at HK$193.20 (US$24.68).
Alibaba's good fortune Thursday mirrored its first two days at HKSE. Thursday's positive performance puts the current stock price around 15.1% above the initial listing price of HK176 (US$22.48) per share on Tuesday. Alibaba's stock rose 2.99% Wednesday, adding to its first-day gains of 6.6% on Tuesday.
Alibaba Group debuted on the HKSE on November 26, becoming the first Chinese company to be publicly listed in both Hong Kong and the United States. The offering raised $11.2 billion, while shares rose 6.3% on the opening day of trading to US$23.89 from an issuance price of US$22.49.
Alibaba's secondary listing in Hong Kong is the world's largest by far this year. It eclipsed the record IPO of Uber Technologies Ltd last May worth $8.1 billion. Analysts said Alibaba's total raise from the oversubscribed offering might have even hit $13 billion if its underwriting banks exercise their "greenshoe" options to buy more shares. Alibaba first listed in New York in 2014.
The bullish market sentiment Thursday mirrors that of Wednesday and will likely carry over into the last trading day of the week on Friday.
"Investors are jumping all over it in Hong Kong," said James Gerrish, portfolio manager at Shaw and Partners, to CNBC on Wednesday. "I'm watching with interest, the 10% rally in the last couple of days since that listing ... in Hong Kong.
Gerrish said his company owns Alibaba stock across its international portfolios. He also believes it's a natural progression for Alibaba to list over in Hong Kong after debuting in New York five years ago.
Alibaba's secondary IPO came at a time when business sentiment in Hong Kong is crumbling amid the ongoing and at times violent pro-democracy protests wracking the city since March.
Alibaba's bragging rights as the world's largest IPO in 2019 won't last out the year, however. It will be overtaken by the massive IPO of Saudi Aramco or the Saudi Arabian Oil Company set for December. The IPO of the world's most profitable company with a net income of $111 billion is seeking a valuation of up to $1.7 trillion in its IPO in Riyadh.
A final price is expected on Dec. 4. The number of shares and the percentage of the company will also be determined on this date.
Saudi Aramco earlier said that it plans to offer only 0.5% of its shares to individual investors. These investors will have to make their requests by today, November 28.
