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BEIJING – Alibaba, AliExpress’s international e-commerce business is spending the equivalent of $7 million to reach consumers in South Korea, the unit told CNBC in an exclusive interview.

AliExpress said it launched three- to five-day shipping to South Korea last year, allowing South Korean residents to buy some goods, especially fashion, from Taobao. That is Alibaba’s main e-commerce site in China.

In total, the business unit said it spent 10 billion won in South Korea this year to lower the prices of products. The company wants to “make sure we have the best prices,” said Gary Topp, AliExpress’s European marketing and operations director.

The investment seeks to benefit from a market valued in billions of dollars and currently dominated by the US.

Online purchases by South Koreans from foreign retail sites increased by $1 billion in 2021 to $4.5 billion, with 41% from the US, according to an August report by the US International Trade Administration.

“Although the United States ranks number one in 2020, other countries such as China are expanding their presence in the Korean e-commerce market,” the report says, noting that South Korean consumers now shop in more than 30 countries.

From January to September this year, the number of AliExpress app users among South Koreans increased by 22%, Seoul-based independent data analytics company TDI said.

That brought monthly active users in South Korea to a record 2.72 million in September, TDI said.

AliExpress said it does not comment on third-party data.

Gross merchandise volume in South Korea rose 44% last year and the number of buyers grew 50%, Zhang Kaifu, Alibaba vice president and AliExpress general manager, said at a conference in April. The company confirmed the data, which did not include monetary amounts. GMV measures the total value of sales in a given period.

By August last year, AliExpress was already one of the top five sites used by South Koreans to buy products directly from foreign sellers, according to the Korea Consumer Agency, a government agency. The other sites were Amazon, iHerb, eBay and Q0010.

In recent years, AliExpress has mainly focused on reaching the European market. Public disclosures about subsidies focused on making it cheaper and faster for consumers in Spain, France and other European countries to receive packages.

As the company prepares for its big shopping trip in November, the Singles’ Day shopping event leading up to November 11, it said it will offer two-day local delivery to customers in Spain and France. This fall, AliExpress began rolling out interest-free payment plans for customers in Europe.

China’s Overseas E-Commerce Boost

Alibaba’s rivals at home, especially Pinduoduod TikTok owner ByteDance launched this year in the overseas e-commerce race. China-based startup Shein has already made waves in fast fashion with the combination of its local supply chain and overseas social media.

Restaurant Brands International, Inc. in the last quarter benefited from strong performance in its international businesses Tim Hortons Canada and Burger King, improvements at Burger King, Popeyes and Firehouse Subs in the United States, continued growth in digital sales and progress in the development of new restaurants.

Net income for the third quarter ended Sept. 30 was $530 million, or $1.17 per diluted share, compared with $329 million, or 70¢, in the prior year period. The increase was due to the benefit of income taxes in the current year compared to an income tax expense in the prior year, increases in segment income in the Tim Hortons and Popeyes segments, the inclusion of income from the Firehouse Subs segment, a favorable change in other operating expenses and the non-recovery of a loss due to early termination of the debt. These factors were offset by unfavorable currency movements, a decrease in Burger King segment revenue, an increase in stock-based compensation and non-cash incentive compensation expense, corporate restructuring and tax advisory fees, and higher interest expense. .

Total revenue advanced 16% to $1.7 billion from $1.5 billion.

“In the third quarter, we increased year-over-year consolidated comparable sales by 9%, driven by 11% comparable sales in Tim Hortons Canada, 15% comparable sales in our international Burger King business and sequential improvements at Burger King. King , Popeyes and local Firehouse Subs Markets,” said José E. Cil, chief executive, during a Nov. 3 call. fourth. “At Burger King US, we saw 4% like-for-like sales and continued to close the sales gap to peers. Our digital channels also continued to contribute to our sales growth this quarter, with global digital sales increasing year-over-year year with a 26% increase to almost $3.4 billion, capturing a third of consolidated systemwide sales.

“We also made strong development progress in the third quarter with Popeyes once again a standout and well positioned for another strong year. Looking ahead, we are confident in our long-term pipeline and expect our development mix to strengthen, Tim Hortons and bringing Popeyes to more and more markets around the world, while taking Burger King to higher levels.

During the quarter, Burger King in the United States increased comparable sales with its value platform, the launch of a crispy chicken sandwich, strategic pricing initiatives and a positive contribution from digital channels, Cil said.

Price increases and menu innovation helped Tim Hortons achieve comparable sales growth of 10% over the prior year. Popeyes’ performance was boosted by expansion of restaurants in North America and various global markets.

“Since 2017, we have added more than 650 net new units to our existing footprint in the local market while leveraging our development expertise and master franchise model to bring nearly 400 new restaurants to international markets,” Cil said of Popeyes. “In the meantime, the team is also preparing to bring Popeyes to major QSR chicken markets such as Indonesia, South Korea and France in the coming months. Our development momentum resulted in 9% net restaurant growth and, along with 3% comparable sales, including 1% of comparable sales in the US, led to system-wide sales growth in the 12% for the third quarter.

Firehouse Subs, which will acquire Restaurant Brands in 2021, posted relatively stable comparable sales while posting strong comparable sales a year earlier, Cil said.

“The brand continued to generate about a third of its sales through digital channels this quarter, helped by successful initiatives such as Rewards Week, which included seven days of exclusive offers and points for our Firehouse Rewards members,” he said. “This was just one of several creative initiatives during the quarter to increase digital engagement while delivering high-quality, delicious products that our customers know and love.”

In September, Restaurant Brands unveiled a plan to improve the performance of Burger King restaurants in the United States, committing to a corporate investment of $400 million over the next two years to support advertising, renovations, technology and digital improvements.

IBM (IBM) is one of the most watched stocks by visitors to Zacks.com lately. Therefore, it may be a good idea to review some of the factors that can affect the short-term performance of stocks.

Over the past month, shares of this technology and consulting company have returned +5.7%, compared to a change of +1.8% for the composite Zacks S&P 500. During this period, the Zacks Computer industry – Integrated Systems, in which IBM is located, up to +1.6%. The key question now is: What could be the future direction of the stock?

While press releases or rumors of a substantial change in a company’s business outlook typically cause its stock to “trend” and lead to an immediate price change, there are always a few fundamental facts that ultimately dominate decision-making. buy and hold decisions.

Changes to estimates of earnings

Rather than focusing on anything else, we at Zacks make it a priority to assess the change in a company’s earnings forecast. This is because we believe that the fair value of your shares is determined by the present value of your future stream of earnings.

Our analysis is essentially based on how short-side analysts who cover stocks revise their earnings estimates to account for the latest trading trends. As a company’s earnings estimates increase, the fair value of its stock also increases. And when a stock’s fair value is higher than its current market price, investors tend to buy the stock, causing the price to rise. Hence, empirical studies indicate a strong correlation between trends in earnings estimate revisions and short-term stock price movements.

For the current quarter, IBM is expected to post earnings of $3.57 per share, indicating a +6.6% change from the previous quarter. The Zacks Consensus Estimate was unchanged over the last 30 days.

For the current fiscal year, the consensus earnings estimate of $9.12 points to a +15% change from the prior year. For the past 30 days, this estimate has not changed.

For the upcoming fiscal year, the consensus earnings estimate of $9.69 indicates a change of +6.2% from what IBM expected to report a year ago. The estimate has not changed in the last month.

With a strong externally audited track record, our proprietary stock rating tool, Zacks Rank, provides a more conclusive picture of a stock’s near-term price direction by effectively harnessing the power of earnings estimate revisions. . Due to the size of the recent change in the consensus estimate, along with three other factors related to earnings estimates, IBM is ranked Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).

The following chart shows the evolution of the company’s 12-month consensus EPS estimate:

Last reported results and upset history

IBM reported revenue of $14.11 billion in the last reported quarter, representing a year-over-year change of -19.9%. EPS of $1.81 for the same period compared to $2.52 a year ago.

Compared to the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $13.73 billion, the reported revenue represents a surprise of +2.72%. The EPS surprise was +1.69%.

In the past four quarters, IBM has beaten consensus EPS estimates three times. The company beat consensus revenue estimates three times during this period.

Valuation

Without considering the valuation of a stock, no investment decision can be efficient. When predicting the future performance of a stock’s price, it is crucial to determine whether the current price correctly reflects the underlying company’s intrinsic value and the company’s growth prospects.

By comparing the current values of a company’s valuation multiples, such as price-to-sales (P/E), price-to-sales (P/S), and price-to-cash flow (P/CF), with its own historical values. help determine whether your stocks are overvalued, overvalued or undervalued. Comparing the company relative to its peers on these parameters gives a good idea of the reasonableness of the share price.

The Zacks Value Style Score (part of the Zacks Style Score system), which pays close attention to traditional and unconventional valuation metrics to rate stocks from A to F (An is better than B; a B is better than a C, etc. ), is quite useful to identify whether a share is overvalued, correctly priced, or temporarily undervalued.

IBM has a B rating on this front, indicating that it trades at a discount to its peers. Click here to see the values of some of the valuation metrics that drove this note.

Conclusion

The facts discussed here and many other information on Zacks.com can help determine whether the market buzz about IBM is worth paying attention to. However, his Zacks Rank #3 suggests he may be working in line with the broader market in the short term.

Zacks calls “best single pick to duplicate”

Out of thousands of stocks, 5 Zacks experts each picked their favorite to skyrocket 100% or more in the coming months. Out of those 5, research director Sheraz Mian picks the one with the most explosive advantage of all.