Internet firm Sea likely to sail into the black for first year since IPO
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Sea was profitable for the first half of 2023 but stumbled into the red in the September quarter. But the firm seemed to have turned a corner by November.
PHOTO: SEA LIMITED
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SINGAPORE - United States-listed Internet firm Sea seems likely to post full-year profits for the first time since its initial public offering in October 2017.
“Although the year is not yet finished, it looks like we are on track to post a profitable year for the first time as a public company,” group chief executive Forrest Li told staff in an e-mail on Dec 22 seen by The Straits Times.
“This is a big milestone, and a victory made even sweeter by the fact that we achieved it in a difficult year full of headwinds,” he added. “Well done, sailors!”
Listed on the New York Stock Exchange, Sea was profitable for the first half of 2023 but stumbled into the red in the September quarter with a net loss of US$144 million (S$190.65 million) at the group level.
By November, however, the holding company for various Internet services, including game developer Garena and e-commerce platform Shopee, seemed to have turned a corner.
Mr Li said that he could already see “early gains from our investments in growth” at that juncture.
The group had started to reinvest its profits albeit “more prudently, such that we still managed to increase our group cash position for the quarter”, he said.
He underscored the significance of this hard-won self-sufficiency, adding that “we want to remain in financial control of our future”.
Looking ahead, Mr Li expects the new year to continue posing many exciting challenges. “Competition remains intense, and we are still actively strengthening our market leadership,” he noted.
“I see 2024 as being a year we can thrive in, especially since we are entering it from a position of confidence and financial strength.”
Sea had seen its shares do well over the pandemic, rising to an all-time high of US$366.99 in October 2021. This was bolstered by consumers having to rely on food delivery and e-commerce platforms during the lockdowns that spanned much of the globe.
Since economies have reopened, however, the allure of such e-commerce companies has dimmed somewhat.
Sea’s shares have retreated significantly, registering a more than 90 per cent decline from its peak.
On Dec 21, its share price rose 8.2 per cent, or US$2.86, to US$37.97.
