JPMorgan Chase & Co. analysts are turning more positive on Chinese Internet stocks, upgrading at least 15 companies just two months after their bearish report on the industry triggered a market selloff and a bout of internal hand-wringing at the biggest US bank.
Analysts led by Alex Yao raised their ratings on companies including Tencent Holdings Ltd. and Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. on Monday, a move that’s likely to raise eyebrows on Wall Street after reports from the team in mid-March called the sector “uninvestable.”
That word was supposed to be removed from the March reports before publication, but slipped through in several cases because of an editorial error, people familiar with the matter said earlier this month. The evocative label helped erase about $200 billion from U.S. and Asian markets and prompted one Chinese technology company to downgrade JPMorgan’s underwriting role on an initial public offering.
