Forrest Li, chief government officer of Sea Ltd., in Singapore, on Wednesday, Could 3, 2023.
Ore Huiying | Bloomberg | Getty Photographs
Shares of Southeast Asian tech big Sea plummeted this week after lacking income expectations and saying it could give attention to progress over income — a reversal from latest cost-cutting measures within the face of financial uncertainty. However analysts stated the pivot is a transfer to defend market share.
On Tuesday, the corporate reported income that missed analyst expectations, coming in at $3.1 billion versus the $3.2 billion anticipated, based on a Refinitiv consensus estimate.
Whereas Forrest Li, Sea’s chairman and group CEO, stated the corporate has “achieved self-sufficiency” and is “now on firmer footing,” he stated Sea will now “reaccelerate investments in progress.”
The inventory plunged after Tuesday’s earnings report, ending the session 28% decrease.
Simply final yr, Sea overhauled its enterprise to give attention to profitability amid excessive inflation and rates of interest. On the identical time, buyers had been pressuring tech corporations to maneuver towards profitability. Different regional tech giants like GoTo and Seize slashed prices by conducting mass layoffs and decreasing buyer incentives.
Sea’s prime administration gave up their salaries, whereas the corporate froze salaries for many workers and paid out decrease bonuses. Native media reported the corporate laid off greater than 7,000 workers in six months.
Defending your market share is the precise technique in e-commerce. You do not wish to give a foot within the door to the brand new participant. That is what we predict Sea’s doing.
Sachin Mittal
Head of telecom, media and know-how researh, DBS Financial institution
In consequence, Sea posted optimistic internet revenue for the primary time within the fourth quarter of 2022 and that determine has remained within the black since. Earlier than that, Sea was largely unprofitable, amassing billions of {dollars} in losses since its inception.
“The excellent news for them is that they’ve constructed up type of a buffer to extend a few of its spending, with all of its segments now worthwhile,” stated Woo.
Boosting e-commerce
Specifically, Li stated the corporate has “began, and can proceed, to ramp up our investments in rising the e-commerce enterprise throughout our markets.” JPMorgan stated these investments may take the type of costly transport subsidies and low cost vouchers.
“Given the weakening macro surroundings and growing competitors from Lazada and TikTok Store, Sea in all probability didn’t have a lot of a alternative however to begin spending to not less than preserve its market share within the area,” stated Jonathan Woo, senior analysis analyst at Phillip Securities Analysis.
Sea’s choice to speed up ecommerce investments in progress is prone to materially weigh on its earnings and share value within the near-term.
Shopee stays the market chief within the area, with a gross merchandise quantity of $47.9 billion in 2022, based on a report from Momentum Works. Lazada’s GMV got here in at $20.1 billion in the identical yr.
“In our view, the pivot might be pushed by competitors together with Sea positioning itself for a rise in client spend, and to develop live-streaming and in-house logistics,” stated JPMorgan analysts.
Proper technique?
However Sea’s choice to ramp up investments is prone to impression earnings, stated JPMorgan. The financial institution downgraded Sea’s score from “obese” to “impartial” with a value goal of $40.50, representing 2.56% upside from the inventory’s Thursday shut of $39.49.
“Sea’s choice to speed up ecommerce investments in progress is prone to materially weigh on its earnings and share value within the near-term,” stated JPMorgan.
“Sea may doubtlessly incur heavy investments in second half of 2023 (a busy marketing campaign interval) leading to earnings decline in second half.”
Sachin Mittal, head of telecom, media and know-how analysis at DBS Financial institution, is bullish on Sea. The agency has a value goal of $90 for Sea, representing roughly 160.9% upside.
“Defending your market share is the precise technique in e-commerce. You do not wish to give a foot within the door to the brand new participant. That is what we predict Sea’s doing,” stated Mittal.
However TikTok Store is “not such a big menace” to Shopee, he stated.
“TikTok does not have in-house logistics. They use third-party gamers to offer e-commerce packages,” Mittal stated on CNBC’s “Squawk Field Asia” on Wednesday. In contrast to TikTok Store, Shopee and Lazada have their very own logistics networks of warehouses and fulfilment facilities all over the world.
“This is likely one of the methods to compete with TikTok. TikTok remains to be very small. It is not such a big menace,” stated Mittal. TikTok Store’s present GMV is barely a fraction of Shopee and Lazada’s.
— CNBC’s Michael Bloom contributed to this report.