In its first earnings report as a listed company, Alibaba Group
Holding Ltd. said its revenue for the quarter through September
rose 54% as online shopping transactions continued to grow and its
mobile services generated more revenue.
The Chinese e-commerce giant, which went public in a record $25
billion debut on the New York Stock Exchange in September, said
Tuesday that its net profit for the quarter fell 39% to $485
million, or 20 cents a share. Excluding certain costs, the company
had earnings of 45 cents a share for the September quarter.
Revenue was $2.74 billion.
Investors are counting on Alibaba's robust growth in the coming
years as China's e-commerce market expands into small cities and
rural areas. Hangzhou-based Alibaba, which operates Taobao and
Tmall marketplaces, accounts for about 80% of China's online
transactions, according to analysts.
Taobao, which hosts millions of small merchants, charges vendors
for services like advertising. Tmall, an online shopping mall that
hosts major global brands such as Apple Inc., Nike Inc. and
Burberry Group PLC, takes a cut from each transaction.
Alibaba said that on its China retail marketplaces, gross
merchandise volume for the quarter increased 49% and annual active
buyers increased 52% year-over-year.
Alibaba's profit margin, which is higher than most of its
industry peers, has declined since last year as the company spends
to expand its services on smartphones and tablets. A shift in
e-commerce business to mobile devices is also weighing on profit,
because merchants pay Alibaba less for mobile advertising than on
personal computers, the company has said.
On Monday, Alibaba shares closed at $101.80, about 50% higher
than its IPO price of $68. The company's overall market value now
stands at about $254 billion, according to FactSet, higher than
U.S. Internet giants Facebook Inc. and Amazon.com Inc.
Write to Juro Osawa at juro.osawa@wsj.com
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