Alibaba Health Information Technology's stock price surged on Tuesday as the company's annual revenue saw significant growth due to improved profit margins and strong demand for medical services and pharmaceuticals on its platform.
Acquired by e-commerce giant Alibaba Group in 2014, the stock price jumped by as much as 13.7% to HKD 3.55, reaching a two-month high. It was also the largest gainer among the Hang Seng Index stocks, which rose 0.6% that day.
For the fiscal year ending March 31, 2024, Alibaba Health's adjusted net profit surged nearly 91% to RMB 1.44 billion (USD 200 million).
Despite sales appearing to plateau after three years of pandemic-driven rapid growth, revenue still rose by approximately 1%, reaching RMB 27.03 billion.
Alibaba Health benefited from improved profit margins, particularly in its online medical services and pharmaceutical sales.
The number of merchants on its Tmall Health platform surged by 28%, exceeding 35,000, with average user revenue growing by 17% year-on-year.
Looking ahead, the company indicated that 2024 could present macroeconomic challenges. However, it also announced plans to further delve into the internet health industry, particularly by building cloud infrastructure for Chinese hospitals.
Moreover, the company stated it would explore the potential of applying artificial intelligence through "large language models."
