Shopee owner Sea misses earnings estimate as AI costs climb
The Singapore-based business is the parent company of Shopee, Garena and Monee.
Sea, the Singapore-based e-commerce leader behind Shopee, Garena and Monee, reported earnings that fell short of estimates, leading to a decline in its shares. The company's adjusted Ebitda for the quarter ended September grew 29% to US$931 million (S$1.19 billion), exceeding analyst expectations of US$990 million. However, revenue rose 43% to US$8.6 billion, surpassing predictions.
Despite this, the stock fell 1.5% as investors grappled with the cost of competing with AI-driven platforms like ByteDance’s TikTok Shop, Alibaba’s Lazada, and Shein. At the same time, Sea's expenses are mounting as it integrates AI into its products and expands into areas like cloud computing and food delivery. Sea's board approved an additional US$1 billion in stock buybacks, after previously purchasing a similar amount.
CEO Forrest Li announced an expansion into cloud services, but analysts remain skeptical about the firm's ability to build and sustain the new business, as well as the associated costs.
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- Singapore’s Sea misses earnings estimates as AI costs climb freemalaysiatoday.com
