ZTO Reports Third Quarter 2024 Unaudited Financial Results

Robust Profitability amidst Consumption Mix-shift
Adjusted Net Income Grew 2.0% to RMB2.4 Billion
Parcel Volume Increased 15.9% to 8.7 Billion

SHANGHAI, Nov. 20, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- ZTO Express (Cayman) Inc. (NYSE: ZTO and SEHK: 2057), a leading and fast-growing express delivery company in China ("ZTO" or the "Company"), today announced its unaudited financial results for the third quarter ended September 30, 2024^[1]. The Company grew parcel volume by 15.9% year over year while maintaining high quality of service and customer satisfaction. Adjusted net income increased 2.0%^[2] to reach RMB2,387.3 million. Cash generated from operating activities was RMB3,112.0 million.

Third Quarter 2024 Financial Highlights

• Revenues were RMB10,675.0 million (US$1,521.2 million), an increase of 17.6% from RMB9,075.9 million in the same period of 2023.
• Gross profit was RMB3,334.8 million (US$475.2 million), an increase of 23.2% from RMB2,706.4 million in the same period of 2023.
• Net income was RMB2,379.0 million (US$339.0 million), an increase of 1.3% from RMB2,349.6 million in the same period of 2023.
• Adjusted EBITDA^[3] was RMB3,739.5 million (US$532.9 million), an increase of 8.7% from RMB3,438.6 million in the same period of 2023.
• Adjusted net income was RMB2,387.3 million (US$340.2 million), an increase of 2.0% from RMB2,340.7 million in the same period of 2023.
• Basic and diluted net earnings per American depositary share ("ADS"^[4]) were RMB2.98(US$0.42) and RMB2.90(US$0.41), an increase of 2.4% and 2.1% from RMB2.91 and RMB2.84 in the same period of 2023, respectively.
• Adjusted basic and diluted earnings per American depositary share attributable to ordinary shareholders^[5] were RMB2.99(US$0.43) and RMB2.91(US$0.41), an increase of 3.5% and 2.8% from RMB2.89 and RMB2.83 in the same period of 2023, respectively.
• Net cash provided by operating activities was RMB3,112.0 million (US$443.5 million), compared with RMB2,938.1 million in the same period of 2023.

Operational Highlights for Third Quarter 2024

• Parcel volume was 8,723 million, an increase of 15.9% from 7,523 million in the same period of 2023.
• Number of pickup/delivery outlets was over 31,000 as of September 30, 2024.
• Number of direct network partners was over 6,000 as of September 30, 2024.
• Number of self-owned line-haul vehicles was over 10,000 as of September 30, 2024.
• Out of the over 10,000 self-owned trucks, over 9,700 were high capacity 15 to 17-meter-long models as of September 30, 2024, compared to over 9,300 as of September 30, 2023.
• Number of line-haul routes between sorting hubs was over 3,900 as of September 30, 2024, compared to over 3,800 as of September 30, 2023.
• Number of sorting hubs was 95 as of September 30, 2024, among which 91 are operated by the Company and 4 by the Company's network partners.

Mr. Meisong Lai, Founder, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of ZTO, commented, "During the third quarter, ZTO maintained high quality of services and customer satisfaction, and achieved 8.72 billion of parcel volume and 2.39 billion of adjusted net income. Our retail volume increased by over 40% year over year for the quarter as we systematically improved cooperations with various ecommerce platforms for reverse logistics, remote area delivery and premium services. Our strategy to improve volume mix has generated very positive contributions to both revenue and operating margin."

Mr. Lai added, "For nearly a decade since ZTO took the number one position in the industry, volume leadership has always been one of our key priorities. The recent stimulus policies by the central government sent a very strong signal for its commitment to support China's economic recovery and long-term growth. In the meantime, the downgrade of consumer spending may still be present for a while before an economic turnaround takes place. Volume leadership is the cornerstone of our business. We are setting plans in motion to maintain high quality of services and customer satisfaction, to regain market share and widen our leadership in parcel volume while achieving a reasonable level of earnings."

Ms. Huiping Yan, Chief Financial Officer of ZTO, commented, "ZTO's core express ASP increased 1.8% for this quarter thanks to continued improvements in key accounts' mix offsetting negative impact from lower per parcel weight and volume incentive increases. Combined unit sorting and transportation costs decreased 8.4%, or 6 cents benefiting from sustained productivity gain initiatives. SG&A as a percentage of revenue remained stable at approximately 5%. Cash flow from operating activities was 3.1 billion, and capital spending was 1.8 billion."

Ms. Yan added, "The express delivery industry experienced high growth contrary to the soft macroeconomic conditions. We have guided down our annual volume targets based on the visibility we have for the year. The increasing proportion of low-value ecommerce packages presented new challenges to the execution of our overall strategy to achieve continuous and simultaneous growth or improvements in quality of services, volume market share and profit. We are making modifications to rebalance our resource allocation as well as key network pricing approaches to regain volume growth momentum and expand our existing market share lead. Our quality of earnings will remain intact, and we are confident in maintaining our leadership in profitability in the industry."

Third Quarter 2024 Unaudited Financial Results 

Total Revenues were RMB10,675.0 million (US$1,521.2 million), an increase of 17.6% from RMB9,075.9 million in the same period of 2023. Revenue from the core express delivery business increased by 18.1% compared to the same period of 2023 driven by a 15.9% growth in parcel volume and a 1.8% increase in unit price. KA revenue including delivery fees from direct sales organizations, established to serve core express KA customers, increased by 122.1% as the proportion of higher-valued parcels such as returned parcels from e-commerce platforms continued to increase. Revenue from freight forwarding services increased by 0.8% compared to the same period of 2023. Revenue from sales of accessories, largely consisted of sales of thermal paper used for digital waybills' printing, increased by 27.6%. Other revenues were derived mainly from financing services.

Total cost of revenues was RMB7,340.2 million (US$1,046.0 million), an increase of 15.2% from RMB6,369.5 million in the same period last year.

Line-haul transportation cost was RMB3,398.0 million (US$484.2 million), an increase of 4.7% from RMB3,245.8 million in the same period last year. The unit transportation cost decreased 9.7% or 4 cents mainly attributable to better economies of scale and improved load rate through more effective route planning.

Sorting hub operating cost was RMB2,224.2 million (US$316.9 million), an increase of 8.6% from RMB2,048.4 million in the same period last year. The increase primarily consisted of (i) RMB108.0 million (US$15.4 million) increase in labor-associated costs, a net result of wage increases partially offset by automation-driven efficiency improvements and (ii) RMB74.9 million (US$10.7 million) increase in depreciation and amortization costs associated with expansion of automation equipment and facility upgrades to further improve the transit efficiency. With standardization in operating procedures, effective performance evaluation system, sorting hub operating cost per unit decreased 6.4% or 2 cents. As of September 30, 2024, there were 535 sets of automated sorting equipment in service, compared to 482 sets as of September 30, 2023.

Cost of accessories sold was RMB161.6 million (US$23.0 million), increased 38.1% compared with RMB117.0 million in the same period last year.

Other costs were RMB1,330.3 million (US$189.6 million), increased 80.6% from RMB736.5 million in the same period last year, included costs for serving higher-valued enterprise customers which increased by RMB546.8 million (US$77.9 million).

Gross Profit was RMB3,334.8 million (US$475.2 million), increased by 23.2% from RMB2,706.4 million in the same period last year. Gross margin rate improved to 31.2% from 29.8% in the same period last year.

Total Operating Expenses were RMB493.0 million (US$70.3 million), compared to RMB282.8 million in the same period last year.

Selling, general and administrative expenses were RMB544.6 million (US$77.6 million), increased by 25.6% from RMB433.7 million in the same period last year, mainly due to (i) RMB74.1 million (US$10.6 million) change in credit loss provision for financing services, and (ii) disposal losses of RMB41.1 million (US$5.9 million) on fixed assets.

Other operating income, net was RMB51.6 million (US$7.3 million), compared to RMB150.9 million in the same period last year. Other operating income mainly consisted of (i) RMB43.4 million (US$6.2 million) of rental income, and (ii) RMB8.2 million (US$1.2 million) of government subsidies and tax rebates.

Income from operations was RMB2,841.8 million (US$405.0 million), an increase of 17.3% from RMB2,423.6 million for the same period last year. Operating margin rate decreased to 26.6% from 26.7% in the same period last year.

Interest income was RMB238.5 million (US$34.0 million), compared with RMB246.4 million in the same period last year.

Interest expenses was RMB66.4 million (US$9.5 million), compared with RMB83.8 million in the same period last year.

Loss from fair value changes of financial instruments was RMB62.7 million (US$8.9 million), compared with a gain of RMB8.6 million in the same period last year. The large swing in USD and RMB exchange rate near quarter end caused a RMB94.9 million (US$13.5 million) unrealized foreign exchange loss related to cash management products.

Income tax expenses were RMB555.0 million (US$79.1 million) compared to RMB271.4 million in the same period last year. In the third quarter of 2023, Shanghai Zhongtongji Network Technology Co., Ltd.(上海中通吉網絡技術有限公司), a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Company, received an income tax refund of RMB207.1 million for being a "Key Software Enterprise" for the tax year 2022.

Net income was RMB2,379.0 million (US$339.0 million), which increased by 1.3% from RMB2,349.6 million in the same period last year.

Basic and diluted earnings per ADS attributable to ordinary shareholders were RMB2.98(US$0.42) and RMB2.90(US$0.41), compared to basic and diluted earnings per ADS of RMB2.91 and RMB2.84 in the same period last year, respectively.

Adjusted basic and diluted earnings per ADS attributable to ordinary shareholders were RMB2.99(US$0.43) and RMB2.91(US$0.41), compared with RMB2.89 and RMB2.83 in the same period last year, respectively.

Adjusted net income was RMB2,387.3 million (US$340.2 million), compared with RMB2,340.7 million during the same period last year.

EBITDA^[1] was RMB3,731.3 million (US$531.7 million), compared with RMB3,449.5 million in the same period last year.

Adjusted EBITDA was RMB3,729.5 million (US$532.8million), compared to RMB3,438.6 million in the same period last year.

Net cash provided by operating activities was RMB3,112.0 million (US$443.5 million), compared with RMB2,938.1 million in the same period last year.

Business Outlook

Based on current market and operating conditions, the Company revises its previously stated annual guidance. Parcel volume for 2024 is expected to be in the range of 33.7 billion to 33.9 billion, representing a 11.6% to 12.3% increase year over year. Such estimates represent management's current and preliminary view, which are subject to change.

Exchange Rate

This announcement contains translation of certain Renminbi amounts into U.S. dollars at specified rates solely for the convenience of readers. Unless otherwise noted, all translations from Renminbi to U.S. dollars were made at the exchange rate of RMB7.0176 to US$1.00, the noon buying rate on September 30, 2024 as set forth in the H.10 statistical release of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve Systems.

Use of Non-GAAP Financial Measures

The Company uses EBITDA, adjusted EBITDA, adjusted net income, adjusted net income attributable to ordinary shareholders, and adjusted basic and diluted earnings per American depositary share attributable to ordinary shareholders, each a non-GAAP financial measure, in evaluating ZTO's operating results and for financial and operational decision-making purposes.

Reconciliations of the Company's non-GAAP financial measures to its U.S. GAAP financial measures are shown in tables at the end of this earnings release, which provide more details about the non-GAAP financial measures.

The Company believes that such Non-GAAP measures help identify underlying trends in ZTO's business that could otherwise be distorted by the effect of the related expenses and gains that the Company includes in income from operations and net income. The Company believes that EBITDA, adjusted EBITDA, adjusted net income, adjusted net income attributable to ordinary shareholders and adjusted basic and diluted earnings per American depositary share attributable to ordinary shareholders provide useful information about its operating results, enhance the overall understanding of its past performance and future prospects and allow for greater visibility with respect to key metrics used by ZTO's management in its financial and operational decision-making.

EBITDA, adjusted EBITDA, adjusted net income, adjusted net income attributable to ordinary shareholders and adjusted basic and diluted earnings per American depositary share attributable to ordinary shareholders should not be considered in isolation or construed as an alternative to net income or any other measure of performance or as an indicator of the Company's operating performance. Investors are encouraged to compare the historical non-GAAP financial measures to the most directly comparable GAAP measures. EBITDA, adjusted EBITDA, adjusted net income, adjusted net income attributable to ordinary shareholders and adjusted basic and diluted earnings per American depositary share attributable to ordinary shareholders presented here may not be comparable to similarly titled measures presented by other companies. Other companies may calculate similarly titled measures differently, limiting their usefulness as comparative measures to ZTO's data. ZTO encourages investors and others to review the Company's financial information in its entirety and not rely on a single financial measure.

Conference Call Information

ZTO's management team will host an earnings conference call at 7:30 PM U.S. Eastern Time on Tuesday, November 19, 2024 (8:30 AM Beijing Time on November 20, 2024).

Dial-in details for the earnings conference call are as follows:

Please dial in 15 minutes before the call is scheduled to begin and provide the passcode to join the call.

A replay of the conference call may be accessed by phone at the following numbers until November 26, 2024:

Additionally, a live and archived webcast of the conference call will be available at http://zto.investorroom.com. 

About ZTO Express (Cayman) Inc.

ZTO Express (Cayman) Inc. (NYSE: ZTO and SEHK:2057) ("ZTO" or the "Company") is a leading and fast-growing express delivery company in China. ZTO provides express delivery service as well as other value-added logistics services through its extensive and reliable nationwide network coverage in China.

ZTO operates a highly scalable network partner model, which the Company believes is best suited to support the significant growth of e-commerce in China. The Company leverages its network partners to provide pickup and last-mile delivery services, while controlling the mission-critical line-haul transportation and sorting network within the express delivery service value chain.

For more information, please visit http://zto.investorroom.com. 

Safe Harbor Statement

This announcement contains statements that may constitute "forward-looking" statements pursuant to the "safe harbor" provisions of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements can be identified by terminology such as "will," "expects," "anticipates," "aims," "future," "intends," "plans," "believes," "estimates," "likely to," and other similar expressions. Among other things, the business outlook and quotations from management in this announcement contain forward-looking statements. ZTO may also make written or oral forward-looking statements in its periodic reports to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC") and The Stock Exchange of Hong Kong Limited (the "HKEX"), in its interim and annual reports to shareholders, in announcements, circulars or other publications made on the website of the HKEX, in press releases and other written materials, and in oral statements made by its officers, directors, or employees to third parties. Statements that are not historical facts, including but not limited to statements about ZTO's beliefs, plans, and expectations, are forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements involve inherent risks and uncertainties. A number of factors could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in any forward-looking statement, including but not limited to the following: risks relating to the development of the e-commerce and express delivery industries in China; its significant reliance on certain third-party e-commerce platforms; risks associated with its network partners and their employees and personnel; intense competition which could adversely affect the Company's results of operations and market share; any service disruption of the Company's sorting hubs or the outlets operated by its network partners or its technology system; ZTO's ability to build its brand and withstand negative publicity, or other favorable government policies. Further information regarding these and other risks is included in ZTO's filings with the SEC and the HKEX. All information provided in this announcement is as of the date of this announcement, and ZTO does not undertake any obligation to update any forward-looking statement, except as required under applicable law.

The following table provides a reconciliation of cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash reported within the condensed consolidated balance sheets that sum to the total of the same such amounts shown in the condensed consolidated statements of cash flows:

For investor and media inquiries, please contact:

ZTO Express (Cayman) Inc.

Investor Relations

E-mail: ir@zto.com 

Phone: +86 21 5980 4508

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SOURCE ZTO Express (Cayman) Inc.