Alibaba's Core Profitability Plunges in March Quarter Amid Heavy Investments

Alibaba on Wednesday said its core profitability plunged in the March quarter amid heavy investments in tech and e-commerce. The Chinese tech giant said its adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, and amortization, a measure of the company’s underlying profitability, came in at 5.1 billion Chinese yuan ($750.9 million). This financial metric strips out one-time gains or losses to focus on a company’s core business. Alibaba’s U.S.-listed shares were initially higher in premarket trade before turning negative. They were last seen trading down 3.4%.