** Hong Kong shares of Alibaba 9988.HK jump 18.8% to HK$137.5, set for the biggest one-day pct rise since March 2022

** Stock hit the highest level since March 20; top pct gainer on Hang Seng Tech Index .HSTECH, Hang Seng Commerce & Industry Index .HSNC

** U.S.-listed stock BABA.N rose 12.9% on Friday

** Alibaba said on Friday that artificial intelligence was key to expanding its cloud computing business, as it reported strong quarterly growth in the sector despite its wider operations missing revenue estimates

** Revenue in Alibaba's cloud segment surged 26%, beating an expected 18.4% rise, while weaker-than-expected growth in the e-commerce business left overall revenue lagging estimates by 2%

** Citi maintains a "Buy" rating on Alibaba's solid AI+Cloud exposure and multiplier effect of synergies between B2C and quick commerce. It raises U.S. shares TP by 26% to $187, Hong Kong stock by 27% to HK$183

** Nomura keeps "Buy", lifts U.S. shares TP to $170 from $152, saying quick commerce is shaping up into a new driver and cloud business is gaining momentum on robust AI demand

** YTD, Hong Kong stock up 65.7%, U.S.-listed shares up 60.5%

(Reporting by Donny Kwok)

((donny.kwok@thomsonreuters.com))