ZTO Reports Third Quarter 2019 Unaudited Financial Results

3.1 Billion Parcels to Expand Market Share 2.3 pts to 18.9%
Adjusted Net Income Increased 24.6% to Reach RMB1.32 Billion

SHANGHAI, Nov. 18, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- ZTO Express (Cayman) Inc. (NYSE: ZTO), 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, 2019^[1].  The Company beat market expectations by generating parcel volume growth of 45.9%, or 18.4 percentage points faster than the industry average. Market share by parcel volume expanded to 18.9% during the third quarter of 2019. Adjusted net income increased 24.6% to reach RMB1,318.5 million.

Third Quarter 2019 Financial Highlights

• Revenues were RMB5,265.8 million (US$736.7 million), an increase of 24.4% from RMB4,234.6 million in the same period of 2018
• Gross profit was RMB1,596.9 million (US$223.4 million), an increase of 20.5% from RMB1,325.3 million in the same period of 2018
• Net income was RMB 1,307.7 million (US$183.0 million), an increase of 23.4% from RMB 1,059.4 million in the same period of 2018
• Adjusted EBITDA^[2] was RMB1,887.5 million (US$264.1 million), an increase of 28.1% from RMB1,473.1 million in the same period of 2018
• Adjusted net income^[3] was RMB 1,318.5 million (US$184.5 million), an increase of 24.6% from RMB1,058.5 million in the same period of 2018
• Basic and diluted earnings per American depositary share ("ADS"^[4]) attributable to ordinary shareholders were RMB1.67 (US$0.23), an increase of 23.7% and 24.6% from RMB1.35 and RMB1.34 in the same period of 2018, respectively
• Adjusted basic and diluted earnings per American depositary share^[5] attributable to ordinary shareholders were RMB1.69 (US$0.24), an increase of 25.2% and 26.1% from RMB1.35 and RMB1.34 in the same period of 2018, respectively
• Net cash provided by operating activities was RMB1,417.7 million (US$198.3 million), compared with RMB911.7 million in the same period of 2018

Operational Highlights for Third quarter 2019

• Parcel volume was 3,057.9 million, an increase of 45.9% from 2,095.9 million in the same period of 2018
• Number of pickup/delivery outlets was approximately 30,000 as of September 30, 2019, while the number of direct network partners was approximately 4,750 as of September 30, 2019
• Number of line-haul vehicles was over 6,600 as of September 30, 2019, which included over 5,700 self-owned vehicles and over 900 vehicles owned and operated by Tonglu Tongze Logistics Ltd., a transportation operator that works exclusively for ZTO. Among the 6,600 vehicles, over 3,950 were high capacity 15-to-17-meter-long trailer trucks compared to over 3,150 as of June 30, 2019
• Number of line-haul routes between sorting hubs was over 2,400 as of September 30, 2019
• Number of sorting hubs was 89 as of September 30, 2019, among which 80 are operated by the Company and the other nine by the Company's network partners

Mr. Meisong Lai, Founder, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of ZTO, commented, "ZTO's market share by parcel volume expanded 2.3 percentage points to 18.9% during the third quarter of 2019. With the strong partnership with thousands of our network partners, ZTO delivered sound execution on our corporate strategy by maintaining high quality of services and achieving targeted net earnings growth as we continue to strengthen our industry leadership."

Mr. Lai added, "Since the founding of our business 17 years ago, we have followed the philosophy of taking control of our own destiny and invest wisely in the future. Throughout the years, we have consistently built infrastructure that are suitable to the stage of market development and operational needs, and we have not only cumulated valuable resources but also developed ability to leverage and maximize value creation and recreation by consolidating resources and expand on our product and service capabilities.  We believe that the Chinese express delivery industry and the Chinese logistic industry have great potential for further steady growth as Chinese economy continue to expand. ZTO is on one hand focusing on execution of our near-term strategies surrounding last mile effectiveness including courier advantages, we are also working towards our longer-term goal of becoming a world-leading comprehensive logistics service provider."

Ms. Huiping Yan, Chief Financial Officer of ZTO, added, "ZTO is increasingly benefiting from its brand recognition for wide service coverage and deep penetration into the Chinese express delivery industry.  We are on track to deliver another year of strong volume and solid profit growth based on the first three quarters performances and the most recent assessment of the market and operational conditions for the rest of 2019.  Supported by the increase in economies of scale, consistent cost productivity gain and corporate structure efficiency, we are able to dampen the impact of price pressure and achieve healthy net income growth. Combined sorting hub and line-haul transportation costs per parcel declined 10.7% year over year, and corporate SG&A, excluding share-based compensation, was 5.3% of total revenues down from 5.6% last year. Adjusted net income rose 24.6% to RMB1.32 billion, and cash from operating activities rose 55.5% to RMB1.42 billion."

Third Quarter 2019 Financial Results

Revenues were RMB5,265.8 million (US$736.7 million), an increase of 24.4% from RMB4,234.6 million in the same period of 2018. Revenue from express delivery services increased by 26.8% compared to the same period of 2018, mainly driven by a 45.9% increase in parcel volume and partially offset by a 13.2% decrease in unit price per parcel largely for incremental volume incentives in response to competition. Revenue from freight forwarding services decreased 5.8% when compared to the same period of 2018. The increase in revenue from sales of accessories was in-line with the increase in the sale of thermal paper used for the printing of digital waybills. Other revenues are mainly associated with equipment sales, financing services and advertising services.

Total cost of revenues was RMB3,668.8 million (US$ 513.3million), an increase of 26.1% from RMB2,909.3 million in the same period last year.

• Line haul transportation cost was RMB1,783.2 million (US$249.5 million), an increase of 31.7% from RMB1,354.2 million in the same period last year. Higher usage of self-owned fleet with increasing number of higher-capacity trailer trucks, improved line-haul route planning and better load rate enhanced the transportation cost leverage.
• Sorting hub operating cost was RMB978.4 million (US$136.9 million), an increase of 27.8% or RMB 212.6 million from RMB765.9 million in the same period last year. Of this increase: (i) RMB130.1 million (US$18.2 million) was associated with sorting hub labor costs, the headcount of sorting hub workers increased 16.7% year over year, much slower than the 45.9% volume increase; and (ii) RMB40.8 million (US$5.7 million) came from depreciation costs associated with the newly installed automated sorting equipment. As of September 30, 2019, 208 sets of automated sorting equipment have been put into use, compared to 78 sets as of September 30, 2018.
• Cost of accessories was RMB138.1 million (US$19.3 million), an increase of 15.9% from RMB119.2 million in the same period last year.
• Other costs were RMB503.7 million (US$70.5 million), an increase of RMB115.7 million (US$16.2 million) compared to the same period last year, which mainly resulted from (i) an increase of RMB66.4 million (US$9.3 million) in dispatching costs associated with serving enterprise customers, (ii) an increase of RMB57.8 million (US$8.1 million) in expenses related to IT and technology development. The Company increased its level of investment in IT research and development to support digitized operational management.

Gross Profit was RMB1,596.9 million (US$223.4 million), an increase of 20.5% from RMB1,325.3million in the same period last year. Gross margin rate decreased one percentage point to 30.3% from 31.3% year over year, as a net result of parcel volume growth, increase in volume incentives and cost productivity gains.

Total Operating Expenses were RMB196.4 million (US$27.5 million), compared to RMB233.6 million in the same period last year.

• Selling, general and administrative expenses were RMB290.9 million (US$40.7 million), compared to RMB249.5 million in the same period last year. The increase was mainly due to an increase in salaries and accrued performance-based bonuses from RMB142.4 million to RMB154.3 million (US$21.6 million). Selling, general and administrative expenses, excluding share-based compensation expense accounted for 5.3% of total revenues compared to 5.6% during the same period last year.
• Other operating income, net was RMB94.5 million (US$13.2 million) for the quarter which was mainly consisted of government subsidies and tax rebates of RMB84.8 million (US$11.9 million) received in the third quarter of 2019

Income from operations was RMB1,400.5 million (US$195.9 million), an increase of 28.3% from RMB1,091.7 million for the same period last year. Operating margin rate increased by 0.8 percentage point to 26.6% year over year while the gross margin rate decreased by 1.0 percentage points. This demonstrated sound corporate cost control and healthy economy of scale.

Interest income was RMB146.4 million (US$20.5 million), compared with RMB124.0 million in the same period in 2018.

Foreign currency exchange gain, before tax was RMB28.5million (US$4.0 million) in the third quarter of 2019, resulted from the appreciation of the U.S. dollar against the Chinese renminbi in the third quarter of 2019.

Income tax expenses were RMB266.3 million (US$37.3 million) and the effective income tax rate was 16.9% for the third quarter of 2019.

Net income was RMB1,307.7 million (US$183.0 million), an increase of 23.4% from RMB1,059.4 million in the same period last year.

Basic and diluted earnings per ADS attributable to ordinary shareholders were RMB1.67 (US$0.23), compared with basic and diluted earnings per ADS attributable to ordinary shareholders of RMB1.35 and RMB1.34in the same period last year, respectively.

Adjusted basic and diluted earnings per ADS attributable to ordinary shareholders were RMB1.69 (US$0.24), compared with adjusted basic and diluted earnings per ADS attributable to ordinary shareholders of RMB1.35 and RMB1.34 in the same period last year, respectively.

Adjusted net income was RMB1,318.5 million (US$184.5 million), compared with adjusted net income of RMB1,058.5 million during the same period last year.

EBITDA was RMB1,876.7 million (US$262.6 million), compared with RMB1,475.1 million in the same period last year.

Adjusted EBITDA was RMB1,887.5 million (US$264.1 million), compared to RMB1,473.1 million in the same period last year.

Net cash provided by operating activities was RMB1,417.7 million (US$198.3 million), compared with RMB911.7 million in the same period last year.

Business Outlook

The Company makes no changes to its previously stated annual guidance: parcel volume for 2019 is expected to be in the range of 11.51 billion to 11.93 billion, representing a 35% to 40% increase year over year, and the Company's adjusted net income is expected to be in the range of RMB4.8 billion to RMB5.2 billion, representing a 14.3% to 23.8% increase from the same period of 2018. Above estimates are subject to change.

Company Share Purchase

On November 15, 2018, the Company announced a new share repurchase program whereby ZTO was authorized to repurchase its own Class A ordinary shares in the form of ADSs with an aggregate value of up to US$500 million during an 18-month period thereafter. The Company expects to fund the repurchase out of its existing cash balance. As of September 30, 2019, the Company has purchased an aggregate of 7,716,436 ADSs at an average purchase price of US$17.33, including repurchase commissions.

The Company believes that the share repurchase program represents ZTO's confidence in the overall market opportunities as well as ZTO's solid operating fundamentals and financial strength for sustained profitable growth and value creation for its shareholders.

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 RMB7.1477 to US$1.00, the noon buying rate on September 30, 2019 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 adjusted EBITDA, adjusted net income, 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 adjusted EBITDA, adjusted net income and adjusted basic and diluted earnings per American depositary share attributable to ordinary shareholders help identify underlying trends in ZTO's business that could otherwise be distorted by the effect of the expenses and gains that the Company includes in income from operations and net income. The Company believes that adjusted EBITDA, adjusted net income 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.

Adjusted EBITDA, adjusted net income 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 review the historical non-GAAP financial measures to the most directly comparable GAAP measures. Adjusted EBITDA, adjusted net income 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 8:00 P.M. U.S. Eastern Time on Monday, November 18, 2019 or 9:00 A.M. Beijing Time on Tuesday, November 19, 2019.

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 accessible through November 25, 2019 by dialing the following numbers:

A live and archived webcast of the conference call will also be available at the Company's investor relations website at http://zto.investorroom.com.

About ZTO Express (Cayman) Inc.

ZTO Express (Cayman) Inc. (NYSE: ZTO) ("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 news release contains "forward-looking" statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and as defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements include but are not limited to the Company's unaudited results for the third quarter of 2019, ZTO management quotes and the Company's financial outlook.

These forward-looking statements are not historical facts but instead represent only the Company's belief regarding expected results and events, many of which, by their nature, are inherently uncertain and outside of its control. The Company's actual results and other circumstances may differ, possibly materially, from the anticipated results and events indicated in these forward-looking statements. The financial results to which this news release is related are preliminary, unaudited and subject to audit adjustment. In addition, the Company may not meet its financial outlook included in this news release and may be unable to grow its business in the manner planned. The Company may also modify its strategy for growth. In addition, there are other risks and uncertainties that could cause the Company's actual results to differ from what it currently anticipates, including those relating to the development of the e-commerce industry in China, its significant reliance on the Alibaba ecosystem, 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. For additional information on these and other important factors that could adversely affect the Company's business, financial condition, results of operations, and prospects, please see its filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

All information provided in this press release and in the attachments is as of the date of the press release. The Company undertakes no obligation to update any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, after the date of this release, except as required by law. Such information speaks only as of the date of this release.

For investor and media inquiries, please contact:

ZTO
Investor Relations Department
Phone: +86-21-6978 7037
E-mail: ir@zto.com

SOURCE ZTO Express (Cayman) Inc.