Chinese e-commerce giant JD.com (9618) posted a better-than-expected first-quarter net profit of 5.1 billion yuan (HK$5.88 billion), down 53.2 percent year-on-year, and its three listing subsidiaries unveiled share buyback plans totaling US$2.4 billion (HK$18.7 billion).
Adjusted net profit reached 7.37 billion yuan, down 42.2 percent year-on-year. Its profit is dragged down by massive increases in expenses, including fulfilment costs, research and development, as well as marketing.
Net revenue for the period rose 4.9 percent to 315.7 billion yuan, also beating the estimates of 311.8 billion yuan. Its retail, logistics, and new businesses recorded growths of 1.8 percent, 29 percent, and 9.1 percent in income, respectively.
"Our user base and shopping frequency continued to expand robustly, with annual active customers hitting a new record," JD.com chief executive Sandy Xu Ran said.
The company also said investment in "JD Food Delivery further narrowed significantly on a sequential basis."
Besides, JD Logistics (2618) and JD Health International (6618) plan to repurchase up to US$1.2 billion and US$1 billion shares over a 48-month period, while Jingdong Industrials (7618) will buy back at most US$200 million shares over 24 months.
For the first quarter, JD Logistics reported a new profit of 880.1 million yuan, up 95 percent from a year ago.
Net profit of JD Health International jumped 78.2 percent to 1.66 billion yuan, while that of Jingdong Industrials rose 45 percent to 185.1 million yuan.
Staff reporter and Reuters
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