By Tracy Qu

JD.com posted its first quarterly loss in nearly four years as the food-delivery subsidy war in China continued to take a toll on the e-commerce giant.

The hit to its bottom line underscored the intense pressure the Beijing-based company has faced as it vies for market share in a competitive industry. JD.com has been locked in an intense food-delivery price battle with Meituan and Alibaba Group since entering the market in early 2025, fueling concerns about thin margins and near-term profitability.

While e-commerce remains its primary business, JD.com has moved quickly to gain a foothold in the food-delivery sector, using heavy subsidies to lure customers away from market leader Meituan and No. 2 player Ele.me. The company aims to grow its share of the food-delivery market to 30% in 2026 from the more than 15% it has gained, it said last month.

The online retailer on Thursday swung to a fourth-quarter net loss of 2.71 billion yuan, equivalent to $392.9 million, its first since the first quarter of 2022. That compared with net profit of 9.85 billion yuan a year earlier. Analysts had expected a smaller loss of 203.6 million yuan, according to a FactSet consensus estimate.

Excluding share-based compensation and fair-value changes of long-term investments, among other items, adjusted net profit was 1.08 billion yuan, a 90% drop from the previous year.

Revenue was better than expected, rising 1.5% to 352.28 billion yuan. The company approved an annual cash dividend of 50 cents a share, representing a roughly $1.4 billion payout to shareholders.

Retail sales, which account for more than four-fifths of total revenue, fell 1.7% in the three months ended December, while logistics sales increased 22%. The new business segment, which includes food delivery and overseas businesses, tripled its revenue.

Analysts say reduced government trade-in incentives have pushed JD.com to rely more on discounts to attract customers. China's macroeconomic weakness and sluggish consumer sentiment have also pressured its core business. The concerns have weighed on the company's Hong Kong-listed stock, which fell 18% last year and has declined an additional 13% so far this year.

Citi recently cut its net profit forecasts for JD.com this year and next by 7.9% and 1.9%, respectively. It maintained a buy rating on the company but lowered the target price on its American depositary receipts to $34.00 from $37.00.

However, HSBC analysts noted Beijing's continued positive stance toward supporting consumption. The latest top policy meeting suggests "a widening of support for consumption beyond just goods, but also more support for services and providers," they said in a research note.

Nasdaq-listed JD.com was recently 1.5% lower at $25.03 in premarket trading.

Write to Tracy Qu at tracy.qu@wsj.com

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CUT: While the continuation of China's consumer-goods trade-in program in 2026 should support the Chinese e-commerce company's revenue, a high base of comparison and the fulfillment of some demand under last year's program will likely damp overall growth prospects, according to a note from HSBC. [Note: suggest cut this paragraph, it's a note from Jan and we already cited a new HSBC note from today lower]

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

March 05, 2026 07:32 ET (12:32 GMT)

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