What happened
Shares of the Chinese e-commerce company Alibaba Group Holding (BABA 0.64%) spiked this morning after the company reported fourth-quarter results that beat analysts' consensus top- and bottom-line estimates.
The tech stock was up by 12.7% as of 11:36 a.m. ET.
So what
Alibaba reported non-GAAP (adjusted) earnings per American depository share (ADS) of $1.25 in the quarter, which was a 23% drop from the year-ago quarter but far above Wall Street's consensus estimate of $1.10 for the quarter.
Image source: Getty Images.
Additionally, Alibaba's revenue increased 9% in the quarter to $32.1 billion, which was better than the average analyst estimate of $29.9 billion.
Alibaba CEO Daniel Zhang said in a press release that the company "delivered on the goal of serving one billion annual active consumers in China this past quarter" and that the company achieved a record gross merchandise volume (GMV) of $1.3 billion for the full year, despite "macro challenges" and supply chain issues.
Now what
Alibaba's management said that the "risks and uncertainties arising from COVID-19" mean that the company can't provide any guidance for the upcoming year.
China has a strict "zero-COVID" policy that has resulted in continual lockdowns of cities and businesses. Some of those shutdowns have actually been good for the company because of its massive e-commerce business.
While it didn't give any forward outlook, management did say that in fiscal 2023 it will "focus on generating sustainable, high-quality revenue growth and optimizing our operating cost structure" amid "these uncertain times."
With Alibaba beating both top- and bottom-line estimates in the quarter, despite macroeconomic and panedemic-related disruptions, it's not surprising why investors were pushing up the company's share price today.
