Alibaba Beats Estimates, Shares Surge in Premarket Trading
Alibaba Group (BABA) shares listed on the US stock market soared in premarket trading on Thursday following the Chinese tech and e-commerce giant's release of quarterly earnings that exceeded analysts' expectations.
Q4 Revenue Jumps 7.6%
Alibaba reported a 7.6% year-over-year increase in revenue to 280.15 billion Chinese yuan ($38.5 billion) for the quarter ended December 2022. This exceeded consensus estimates.
Cloud Business Drives Growth
The company attributed the strong performance to growth in its cloud computing business, which includes artificial intelligence (AI) initiatives. Cloud revenue surged 13% year-over-year, with AI-related product revenue experiencing "triple-digit growth" for the sixth consecutive quarter.
Earnings Beat Estimates
Earnings per share per American Depositary Share (ADS) of $2.93 also beat analysts' forecasts. Both revenue and earnings surpassed estimates from Visible Alpha.
CEO: AI and User-Centric Strategies Drive Progress
"This quarter's results demonstrated substantial progress in our 'user first, AI-driven' strategies and the reaccelerated growth of our core businesses," said CEO Eddie Wu.
12-Month Share Surge
Alibaba shares have skyrocketed 70% in the past 12 months. This growth has been fueled by reports of a partnership with Apple to develop AI features for iPhones in China and news of its co-founder Jack Ma's return to favor with the Chinese government.