Coupang Posts $501 Million Quarterly Loss, And Still Lost $321 Million Without The Fire
Revenue rose 7% to $10 billion, but adjusted EBITDA fell to $116 million, a 1.2% margin, from $413 million a year earlier.
Coupang, which runs online retail, restaurant delivery, video streaming and financial services mostly in Korea, reported a third-quarter net loss of $501 million on Tuesday, against a $95 million profit a year earlier. Excluding costs from a July fire at its Incheon fulfillment center, the loss was still $321 million, the company said.
Sales up, profit gone
Revenue reached $10.0 billion, up 7% as reported and 11% in constant currency, which strips out exchange-rate swings, according to the 8-K filing and earnings release.
Operating results turned to a $450 million loss from a $162 million profit. Excluding fire-related costs of $248 million, the operating loss was $202 million. Diluted earnings were minus $0.28 per share, or minus $0.18 excluding the fire, versus $0.05 a year earlier.
Adjusted EBITDA, a measure of core operating profit, fell to $116 million, a 1.2% margin, from $413 million and 4.5%. Gross profit slid 6% to $2.6 billion, with margin at 25.7%, down 364 basis points (about 3.6 percentage points).
Core shopping business takes the hit
Product Commerce, the core shopping segment, had revenue of $8.4 billion, up 5% (8% in constant currency). Its adjusted EBITDA dropped to $385 million from $705 million. Active customers rose 2% to 25.2 million from 24.7 million.
Developing Offerings, which includes businesses beyond core retail, grew revenue 23% to $1.6 billion and narrowed its adjusted EBITDA loss to $269 million from $292 million.
Cash and the nine-month hole
Over nine months, Coupang lost $1,337 million after earning $234 million a year earlier. That period includes $410 million of certain administrative fines, which the company excludes from its adjusted measures along with the fire costs.
Operating cash flow for the trailing twelve months was $845 million, down $1.5 billion, and free cash flow was negative $409 million. Coupang repurchased 12.7 million Class A shares for $201 million during the quarter. Cash stood at $5,444 million at September 30, down from $6,318 million at year-end.
Management hosts a conference call at 5:30 p.m. ET on Tuesday to discuss the quarter.
Sources
- 8-K Filing — Coupang, Inc. (CPNG) — SEC EDGAR
- Exhibit cpng-09302026ex991.htm — Coupang, Inc. 8-K exhibit — SEC EDGAR
