Alibaba Group Holding Ltd’s 180-day post-IPO lockup expires March 18, following its record-setting IPO last September, allowing about 437 million shares or roughly 18% of the company to be sold publicly.
The Chinese e-commerce giant, however, said that of that total, about 100 million shares will remain subject to trading restrictions that apply to employees, until after the company announces quarterly results in May.
The number of shares that will be freed is more than the number sold during Alibaba’s IPO, which was 368 million.
Analyst said the lockup expiration on March 18 could significantly exert selling pressure on Alibaba’s stock.