Blog Exposure – Alibaba and its Subsidiary Cainiao Network Acquire 10% Stake in Chinese Express Delivery Company ZTO Express

Stock Monitor: Container Store Group Post Earnings Reporting

LONDON, UK / ACCESSWIRE / May 31, 2018 / If you want access to our free research report on Alibaba Group Holding Ltd (NYSE: BABA) (“Alibaba”), all you need to do is sign up now by clicking the following link www.active-investors.com/registration-sg/?symbol=BABA as the Company’s latest news hit the wire. On May 29, 2018, the Company and its logistic arm Cainiao Network (“Cainiao”) announced that they have signed an agreement to acquire a 10% equity stake in ZTO Express (Cayman) Inc. (NYSE: ZTO) (“ZTO”). ZTO is one of China’s leading and fastest growing express delivery Company. Alibaba and Cainiao have offered to invest approximately $1.38 billion in ZTO. Register today and get access to over 1,000 Free Research Reports by joining our site below:

www.active-investors.com/registration-sg

Active-Investors.com is currently working on the research report for The Container Store Group, Inc. (NYSE: TCS), which also belongs to the Services sector as the Company Alibaba Group Holding. Do not miss out and become a member today for free to access this upcoming report at:

www.active-investors.com/registration-sg/?symbol=TCS

Active-Investors.com is focused on giving you timely information and the inside line on companies that matter to you. This morning, Alibaba Group Holding most recent news is on our radar and our team decided to put out a fantastic report on the company that is now available for free below:

www.active-investors.com/registration-sg/?symbol=BABA

The deal is expected to close in the initial period of June 2018, and is subject to regulatory approvals and other closing conditions.

Rationale Behind the Strategic Investment

Alibaba and Cainiao’s decision to acquire the 10% stake in ZTO is linked to Alibaba’s plans of expanding into retail operations in addition to growing its ecommerce business. The investment in ZTO will allow Alibaba to take advantage of new retail opportunities and also act as a catalyst in digitalizing the logistics industry in China. Alibaba has coined a new concept, New Retail, which envisions the seamless integration between online and offline commerce. The current investment is a step forward in promoting the growth of New Retail. Alibaba plans to bridge the gap between online and offline commerce by deep consumer engagement, using advanced technology and data analytics. The plan is to grow New Retail by investing in smart supply chains, retail technologies, advanced logistics, and mobile payments.

The investment by Alibaba will focus on helping both Cainiao and ZTO to strengthen their capabilities and expertise in areas like first and last-mile pickup and delivery, warehouse management, cross-border logistics and technology-driven smart solutions. The aim is to ensure creating value and improving experiences of both the customers and merchants.

ZTO is one of the fastest growing express delivery Company in China and has gained expertise in line-haul, last-mile, express delivery, in-city delivery, fulfilment, and warehousing. China has seen a strong growth in the retail sector. As per a report by a Chinese agency, retail sales in China are expected to grow 10% in FY18 and the growth is mainly due to smart services backed by the internet. ZTO has also been expanding its capabilities and product offerings in the area of express delivery. The Company invested in improving its logistics eco-system, especially in areas like LTL transportation services, international logistics, and supply-chain management.

Comments from Management

Commenting on acquiring the 10% stake in ZTO, Daniel Zhang, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Alibaba and Chairman of Cainiao, said:

“The continuing expansion of New Retail is catalyzing new opportunities and demands in logistics. This strategic investment will strengthen synergies across our mutual businesses to create new value and improved experience for merchants and consumers.”

Lin Wan, President of Cainiao, added:

“The logistics industry in China is highly competitive with its own unique features and presents plenty of new opportunities ahead. This investment will enable Cainiao and ZTO to supercharge joint innovation and development to accelerate digitalization of the industry.”

Meisong Lai, Founder, Chairman, and CEO of ZTO, stated:

“Our continued collaboration with all industry constituents, and particularly with Alibaba and Cainiao through this strategic partnership, will amplify our competitive advantage and support our mission to become a world-class comprehensive logistics service provider.”

About ZTO Express (Cayman) Inc.

ZTO is a leading express delivery Company in China and one of the largest express delivery Companies globally, in terms of total parcel volume in 2017. The Company’s delivery network covered 96% of China’s cities and counties as of December 31, 2016. The Company provides express delivery service to millions of online merchants and consumers transacting on leading Chinese ecommerce platforms, such as Alibaba and JD.com. ZTO operates a highly scalable network partner model which it believes is best suited to support the significant growth of ecommerce in China.

About Cainiao Network

Founded in 2013, Cainiao is the logistics arm of Alibaba and has the world’s leading smart logistics network. It uses some of the industry’s leading technologies like e-shipping labels and smart sorting. The Company has the bandwidth to provide same-day and next-day delivery in nearly 1,500 districts and counties in China. The Company also operates Cainiao Post, which is a network of last-mile stations covering communities in the top 100 cities and around 1,800 university campuses across China.

About Alibaba Group Holding Ltd

Alibaba was founded in 1999 by investors led by Jack Ma. The Group operates several businesses and is primarily focused on ecommerce, retail, Internet, AI, and upcoming technologies. Some of the Group’s leading subsidiaries include logistics arm – Cainiao Network; financial services arm – Ant Financial Services; leading third-party online payment platform in China – Alipay; and so on.

Stock Performance Snapshot

May 30, 2018 – At Wednesday’s closing bell, Alibaba Group’s stock slightly declined 0.01%, ending the trading session at $197.98.

Volume traded for the day: 13.91 million shares.

Stock performance in the last month – up 10.89%; previous three-month period – up 6.36%; past twelve-month period – up 59.78%; and year-to-date – up 14.82%

After yesterday’s close, Alibaba Group’s market cap was at $502.40 billion.

Price to Earnings (P/E) ratio was at 51.40.

The stock is part of the Services sector, categorized under the Specialty Retail, Other industry. This sector was up 1.0% at the end of the session.

Active-Investors:

Active-Investors (A-I) produces regular sponsored and non-sponsored reports, articles, stock market blogs, and popular investment newsletters covering equities listed on NYSE and NASDAQ and Canadian stocks. A-I has two distinct and independent departments. One department produces non-sponsored analyst certified content generally in the form of press releases, articles and reports covering equities listed on NYSE and NASDAQ and the other produces sponsored content (in most cases not reviewed by a registered analyst), which typically consists of compensated investment newsletters, articles and reports covering listed stocks and micro-caps. Such sponsored content is outside the scope of procedures detailed below.

A-I has not been compensated; directly or indirectly; for producing or publishing this document.

PRESS RELEASE PROCEDURES:

The non-sponsored content contained herein has been prepared by a writer (the “Author”) and is fact checked and reviewed by a third-party research service company (the “Reviewer”) represented by a credentialed financial analyst [for further information on analyst credentials, please email info@active-investors.com. Rohit Tuli, a CFA® charterholder (the “Sponsor”), provides necessary guidance in preparing the document templates. The Reviewer has reviewed and revised the content, as necessary, based on publicly available information which is believed to be reliable. Content is researched, written and reviewed on a reasonable-effort basis. The Reviewer has not performed any independent investigations or forensic audits to validate the information herein. The Reviewer has only independently reviewed the information provided by the Author according to the procedures outlined by A-I. A-I is not entitled to veto or interfere in the application of such procedures by the third-party research service company to the articles, documents or reports, as the case may be. Unless otherwise noted, any content outside of this document has no association with the Author or the Reviewer in any way.

NO WARRANTY

A-I, the Author, and the Reviewer are not responsible for any error which may be occasioned at the time of printing of this document or any error, mistake or shortcoming. No liability is accepted whatsoever for any direct, indirect or consequential loss arising from the use of this document. A-I, the Author, and the Reviewer expressly disclaim any fiduciary responsibility or liability for any consequences, financial or otherwise arising from any reliance placed on the information in this document. Additionally, A-I, the Author, and the Reviewer do not (1) guarantee the accuracy, timeliness, completeness or correct sequencing of the information, or (2) warrant any results from use of the information. The included information is subject to change without notice.

NOT AN OFFERING

This document is not intended as an offering, recommendation, or a solicitation of an offer to buy or sell the securities mentioned or discussed, and is to be used for informational purposes only. Please read all associated disclosures and disclaimers in full before investing. Neither A-I nor any party affiliated with us is a registered investment adviser or broker-dealer with any agency or in any jurisdiction whatsoever. To download our report(s), read our disclosures, or for more information, visithttp://active-investors.com/legal-disclaimer/.

CONTACT

For any questions, inquiries, or comments reach out to us directly. If you’re a company we are covering and wish to no longer feature on our coverage list contact us via email and/or phone between 09:30 EDT to 16:00 EDT from Monday to Friday at:

Email: info@active-investors.com

Phone number: 73 29 92 6381

Office Address: 6, Jalan Kia Peng, Kuala Lumpur, 50450 Kuala Lumpur, Wilayah Persekutuan Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

CFA® and Chartered Financial Analyst® are registered trademarks owned by CFA Institute.

SOURCE: Active-Investors

ReleaseID: 501316