AsianFin -- The American depositary receipts (ADRs) of PDD Holdings Inc. on Tuesday sank around 7.3% to close at $119.58, wiping out their gains since August 20. Shares logged their worst day in nearly six months as operator of low-cost e-commerce platforms Pinduoduo in China and Temu internationally cautioned further volatility amid ongoing headwinds, such as intense competition and macro-economic uncertainties.
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PDD Vice President of Finance Liu Jun acknowledged prolonged challenges and warned of more fluctuation in performance following the quarter ended September 30. In the third quarter, revenues growth continued to moderate, reflecting the ongoing evolution of the competitive landscape and external uncertainties,”said Liu. “As we roll out greater merchant support initiatives and ecosystem investments, financial results may continue to fluctuate from quarter to quarter.”
PDD reported revenue for the September quarter advanced 9% year-over-year (YoY) to RMB108.28 billion ($15.2 billion), beating analysts estimated RMB107.59 billion polled by Bloomberg. The top line snapped a trend of slowdown after the company delivered a YoY rise of 7.1% three months earlier, the slowest growth rate since fourth quarter of 2021.
PDD for the first time this year reversed a quarterly decline in bottom line. Net income gained 17% YoY to RMB29.33 billion, beating analysts projection of RMB22.46 billion according to a FactSet consensus. The first and second quarter of the year saw a 47% and a 3.9% YoY crash in profit, respectively. On non-GAAP basis, adjusted diluted earnings per American depositary share (ADS)was RMB21.08, surging 13.4% YoY following a decrease of 5% for the previous quarter. That was ahead of the anticipated RMB16.59.
"We have seen many industry peers deploy significant capital to develop new business models, leading to increasingly fierce competition," PDD’s co-chief executive Zhao Jiazhen told analysts on an earnings call. He reiterated the firm expects financial results to continue fluctuating in the coming quarters as it invests in merchant support programmes and platform upgrades.
Zhao vowed to continue invest in the long-term outlook of the entire e-commerce ecosystem when the company is bracing the tenth anniversary. In an increasingly competitive environment, we remain steadfast in taking a long-term focus,” said Zhao. “As a public platform, we will continue to invest in merchant support initiatives, driving industry upgrades and the sustainable development of the platform in the long run.”
While competition has intensified with many players investing in new business models, PDD will continue to invest in its platform ecosystem, including merchant support initiatives like the RMB10 billion fee reduction program, Zhao on the call said. He pointed out these investments are long-term and will impact revenue and profit, but they are essential for ecosystem development.
Performance of PDD’s two segments reflected tepid growth in the homeland market despite deep discounts and Chinese government’s fiscal stimulus to boost consumption, while international Temu unit stabilized for the September quarter after U.S. policy disruptions.
Revenue from online marketing services and others climbed 8% YoY to RMB53.35 billion for the third quarter after a 13% YoY gain for the previous quarter.That marked PDD’s first quarterly growth rate less than 10% this year. Transaction services, the charges the company collected from merchants for transactions on its platform, hauled RMB54.93 billion with a 10% YoY rise, compared with a merely 0.7% YoY increase from April to June.
PDD doesn’t break out separate results for its international business. Analysts at Citi said that Temu has experienced a rebound in U.S. sales and maintained solid momentum in Europe. Temu’s global monthly active users on Apple devices rose 42% in September, according to a recent note from Citi. CFRA analyst Jian Xiong Lim in a note on Tuesday estimated "overseas revenue growth (a key driver in prior years) has likely slowed, as it redirects its investment focus back to China due to rising domestic competition."
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