Shares of Alibaba Group Holding Ltd (NYSE:BABA) surged to record high after the company reported strong revenue growth in the second-quarter of FY2015. The stock is up another 3.50% in early trading Wednesday. It was Alibaba’s first quarterly report since going public. The company shrugged off a slowdown in Chinese economy, reporting a 53.7% increase in Q2 revenue.
Alibaba’s mobile GMV rose 263% YoY
Alibaba’s Q2 revenue came in at $2.74 billion, beating the Wall Street projection of $2.61 billion. Net income, excluding one-time charges, rose 16% to $1.16 billion or 45 cents per share. UBS analyst Erica Poon Werkun said in a research note that improving trends point to “long-term strength” of Alibaba. The company’s gross merchandise value (GMV) soared 48.7% to $90.5 billion during the quarter.
The Chinese company’s mobile GMV stood at $32.43 billion. Mobile now makes up close to 36% of Alibaba’s total GMV. That’s a significant improvement from just 14.7% in the same quarter a year ago. Werkun is optimistic about the forthcoming Singles Day promotion periods. The promotion has become an international event with cross-border retail.
Alibaba’s monetization momentum progressing well
UBS remains bullish on Alibaba’s short-term momentum as well as long-term prospects. The research firm has increased its price target on the stock from $100 to $125. Barclays analyst Alicia Yap said in a research note that Taobao GMV re-accelerated during the quarter, posting a growth of 38%. The company’s mobile revenue surged 1,020% to $606 million, making up 22% of its total revenue. Tmall GMV rose 78% in the second-quarter.
Barclays said re-acceleration in online marketing revenue growth and strong commission revenue growth suggest that the monetization momentum was progressing better than expected. Alibaba’s commission revenue doubled to $697 million. Barclays raised its price objective on the stock from $107 to $116, and reiterated its Overweight rating.
At the end of second-quarter, Alibaba had $17.9 billion in cash and short-term investments, up from just $7 billion in March 2014. Shares of the company jumped 3.64% to $109.96 at 10:07 AM EST on Wednesday.
