Sea Limited (SE) Stock Jumps 5% as Q1 Revenue Crushes Wall Street Forecasts

Quick Summary

• Shares of Sea Limited (SE) climbed 5.4% following Q1 results showing revenue of $7.1B, significantly exceeding the $6.45B Wall Street forecast
• Adjusted earnings per share of $0.67 fell below the analyst consensus of $0.76
• E-commerce platform Shopee achieved record gross merchandise value of $37.3B, representing 30.2% year-over-year growth
• Gaming division Garena delivered its strongest performance since 2021, with bookings rising 20.1% to $931.4M
• Digital financial services unit Monee saw revenue jump 57.8% to $1.2B, while its loan portfolio expanded 71.3% annually

On May 12, Sea Limited (SE) unveiled its first-quarter 2026 financial results, triggering a 5.4% stock price increase despite falling short on earnings expectations. Investors focused on the company’s impressive revenue performance, which significantly outpaced analyst projections.

Sea Limited, SE

The Singapore-based tech conglomerate reported quarterly revenue of $7.1 billion, substantially surpassing the Street estimate of $6.45 billion. This represents a robust 46.6% increase compared to the $4.8 billion generated during the same period last year. However, adjusted earnings per share of $0.67 missed the consensus forecast of $0.76 by nine cents.

The company’s net income expanded 6.7% to reach $438.2 million, while total adjusted EBITDA climbed 9.3% year-over-year to $1.0 billion.

Chief Executive Officer Forrest Li emphasized the company’s strategic approach of investing to strengthen its competitive advantages while maintaining rigorous financial oversight.

E-Commerce Platform Achieves Milestone Performance

Shopee, Sea’s e-commerce division, posted record-breaking quarterly results. The platform’s gross merchandise value totaled $37.3 billion, marking a 30.2% year-over-year increase. Segment revenue surged 44.4% to reach $4.5 billion.

Particularly noteworthy was the performance of core marketplace revenue — encompassing transaction fees and advertising income — which soared 61.0% to $3.8 billion. This metric serves as a critical indicator of the platform’s long-term revenue potential.

Shopee’s adjusted EBITDA decreased to $223.2 million from the prior year’s $264.4 million, a decline management attributed to strategic investment initiatives. The company reaffirmed its guidance for approximately 25% annual GMV growth for Shopee throughout 2026.

The platform processed 4.0 billion gross orders during the quarter, up 29.3% from the previous year. Li highlighted this as another milestone quarter spanning GMV, order volume, and revenue metrics.

Gaming Division Returns to Form

Garena, the company’s gaming segment, demonstrated a remarkable resurgence. Total bookings increased 20.1% to $931.4 million, while revenue jumped 40.6% to $696.6 million.

The gaming unit’s adjusted EBITDA grew 25.2% to $573.6 million, with the EBITDA margin improving to 61.6% of bookings from 59.1% in the year-ago quarter.

Free Fire remained the primary revenue driver, while Arena of Valor achieved record-setting contributions. The division reported 666.5 million quarterly active users, essentially flat year-over-year, though paying users increased 12.4% to 72.6 million.

Monee, the digital financial services segment, maintained strong momentum with revenue climbing 57.8% to $1.2 billion and adjusted EBITDA rising 14% to $275.2 million. The consumer and small business loan portfolio reached $9.9 billion, representing 71.3% annual growth.

Non-performing loans remained stable at 1.1% of the total loan book, a key metric as management continues scaling the lending operations.

During the first quarter, Sea executed $168.4 million in share repurchases, buying back 1.8 million shares under its $1.0 billion buyback authorization.

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