Image source: Alibaba.
What happened
Shares of Alibaba Group (BABA 0.28%) rose 15.1% in June 2017, according to data from S&P Global Market Intelligence.
So what
The China-based provider of various e-commerce services and online shopping platforms held an impressive investor conference in early June. CFO Maggie Wu issued full-year guidance of roughly 47% revenue growth, founder and chairman Jack Ma reiterated his vision of servicing a cool $1 trillion of gross merchandise volume in the year 2020, and Alibaba shares opened 13% higher the next day.
Now what
Alibaba's business goals are both grandiose and eminently reachable. The company is expected to manage approximately $550 billion of gross sales in fiscal year 2018 (the current year), so it would only take 35% of average annual growth to reach $1 trillion in two years.
Jack Ma can lean on a robust performance history when he makes these lofty claims. Alibaba's sales and free cash flows have have more than doubled since the stock joined the NYSE market three years ago:
BABA Revenue (TTM) data by YCharts.
This is an incredibly successful company today, and Alibaba should continue its high-growth ways for years to come. For example, the company finds just 15% of its total customers outside China's borders, and is making a conscious effort to improve its global presence. As an Alibaba shareholder myself, I see a growth story for the ages -- and we're still in the early chapters.
