Investing.com - Alibaba Group Holdings (NYSE:BABA) saw shares rise sharply in pre-market trade on Thursday, after the Chinese e-commerce giant reported stronger than expected fourth quarter earnings ahead of the opening bell.
Alibaba reported adjusted earnings of 48 cents per share in its fiscal fourth quarter, above expectations for earnings of 42 cents per share.
The company's revenue totaled $2.81 billion, up 45% from the same period a year earlier and beating forecasts for sales of $2.51 billion.
Mobile Monthly Active Users grew to 289 million in the month ended March 31, compared to 265 million in the month ended December 31, 2014, representing a net addition of 24 million MAUs over the quarter, and a 77% increase from 163 million in the month ended March 31, 2014.
"Alibaba had a strong quarter with significant growth across our key operating metrics," said Jonathan Lu, Chief Executive Officer of Alibaba Group.
"We grew revenue, gross merchandise volume and annual active buyers, and we expanded our unrivaled leadership position in mobile," Lu added.
Alibaba Group also announced that Daniel Zhang, currently Chief Operating Officer of Alibaba Group, will become CEO of Alibaba Group, effective May 10, 2015.
Shares in Alibaba rallied 7.5% in pre-market trade to $86.00 from a closing price of $80.00 on Wednesday.
Meanwhile, the outlook for U.S. equity markets was downbeat. The Dow futures indicated a loss of 0.45% at the open, the S&P 500 futures pointed to a decline of 0.5%, while Nasdaq 100 futures slipped 0.5%.