ZTO Express Announces $300 Million Buyback Plan

Photo of Chris Lange
By Chris Lange Updated Published
This post may contain links from our sponsors and affiliates, and Flywheel Publishing may receive compensation for actions taken through them.
ZTO Express Announces $300 Million Buyback Plan

© Thinkstock

ZTO Express (Cayman) Inc. (NYSE: ZTO) saw its shares make a handy gain to kick off the week after the company announced a new share repurchase program. ZTO plans to repurchase up to $300 million of its class A ordinary shares in the form of American depositary shares over the next 12 months. The company will finance these repurchases through its existing cash balance.

Keep in mind that this was one of the largest initial public offerings back in 2016, raising about $1.62 billion in the IPO. The company currently has a market cap of approximately $10.6 billion.

Excluding Monday’s move, ZTO has actually outperformed the broad markets, with the stock up 16% year to date. Although the stock has performed well in 2017, its performance since the IPO has been very underwhelming. The stock was originally priced at $19.50 when it came public in October.

[nativounit]

Mr. Meisong Lai, founder and chief executive of ZTO, commented:

The Company’s share repurchase plan demonstrates our confidence in the Company’s strategy, operating fundamentals and the future business prospects of China’s express delivery industry. We are committed to creating more value for our shareholders.

ZTO provides express delivery service through its nationwide network, as well as other value-added logistics services. The company has developed one of the most extensive and reliable delivery networks in China, covering over 96% of China’s cities and counties.

Shares of ZTO were last seen up 4.7% at $14.66 on Monday, with a consensus analyst price target of $17.39 and a 52-week trading range of $11.14 to $18.45.

[wallst_email_signup]

Photo of Chris Lange
About the Author Chris Lange →

Chris Lange is a writer for 24/7 Wall St., based in Houston. He has covered financial markets over the past decade with an emphasis on healthcare, tech, and IPOs. During this time, he has published thousands of articles with insightful analysis across these complex fields. Currently, Lange's focus is on military and geopolitical topics.

Lange's work has been quoted or mentioned in Forbes, The New York Times, Business Insider, USA Today, MSN, Yahoo, The Verge, Vice, The Intelligencer, Quartz, Nasdaq, The Motley Fool, Fox Business, International Business Times, The Street, Seeking Alpha, Barron’s, Benzinga, and many other major publications.

A graduate of Southwestern University in Georgetown, Texas, Lange majored in business with a particular focus on investments. He has previous experience in the banking industry and startups.

Featured Reads

Our top personal finance-related articles today. Your wallet will thank you later.

Continue Reading

Top Gaining Stocks

CBOE Vol: 1,568,143
PSKY Vol: 12,285,993
STX Vol: 7,378,346
ORCL Vol: 26,317,675
DDOG Vol: 6,247,779

Top Losing Stocks

LKQ
LKQ Vol: 4,367,433
CLX Vol: 13,260,523
SYK Vol: 4,519,455
MHK Vol: 1,859,865
AMGN Vol: 3,818,618