5 Revealing Analyst Questions From Coupang's Q2 Earnings Call

Coupang’s second quarter results prompted a negative market reaction, with investors focusing on the company’s earnings miss despite solid revenue growth and margin improvement. Management attributed the quarter’s performance to robust customer engagement, expansion of the Product Commerce segment, and notable gains in the Fresh category, which grew 25% year over year. CEO Bom Kim emphasized the importance of enhancing product selection and delivery speed, noting that “every improvement we make in selection, price and service strengthens customer engagement, enabling us to lower costs and create a virtuous cycle of value for our customers, sellers and brands.”

Is now the time to buy CPNG? Find out in our full research report (it’s free).

While we enjoy listening to the management's commentary, our favorite part of earnings calls are the analyst questions. Those are unscripted and can often highlight topics that management teams would rather avoid or topics where the answer is complicated. Here is what has caught our attention.

Our Top 5 Analyst Questions From Coupang’s Q2 Earnings Call

• Stanley Yang (JPMorgan) asked about expectations for further margin improvement in the Product Commerce segment and the company’s AI strategy. CFO Gaurav Anand responded that while margins may not grow linearly, technology, automation, and expanding margin-accretive offerings should drive annual expansion. CEO Bom Kim explained that AI is being used in recommendation engines and operations, with large language models offering new efficiency gains.
• Minuh Cha (Goldman Sachs) questioned whether investments in developing offerings, especially Taiwan, could peak this year. CFO Gaurav Anand said it is too early to forecast beyond the current year due to the evolving pace of investments but reiterated that consolidated margin improvement is expected.
• Seyon Park (Morgan Stanley) inquired about Coupang’s interest in GPU management and the impact of government-driven consumer stimulus on growth. CEO Bom Kim said GPU investments are currently small and focused internally, and that the main growth driver remains customer engagement rather than macro cycles.
• Jiong Shao (Barclays) asked for details on investments in Taiwan and the drivers behind Product Commerce margin expansion. CEO Bom Kim stated that multiple pilot initiatives are underway in Taiwan, and CFO Gaurav Anand attributed margin gains to operational efficiency and supply chain optimization.
• Wei Fang (Mizuho) sought clarification on product selection growth in Taiwan and the impact of food delivery pickup orders on margins. CEO Bom Kim said selection growth continues across all categories in Taiwan and that food delivery is still in early stages, with ongoing experiments to improve engagement and profitability.

Catalysts in Upcoming Quarters

In coming quarters, the StockStory team will be monitoring (1) the pace of margin expansion in the Product Commerce segment and whether technology investments deliver expected efficiencies, (2) the scaling trajectory and profitability milestones of the Taiwan business, and (3) progress in margin-accretive categories such as Fresh and food delivery. Additional updates on AI-driven automation and new product initiatives will also be key indicators of execution.

Coupang currently trades at $28.18, down from $29.93 just before the earnings. Is there an opportunity in the stock?The answer lies in our full research report (it’s free).

Our Favorite Stocks Right Now

Trump’s April 2025 tariff bombshell triggered a massive market selloff, but stocks have since staged an impressive recovery, leaving those who panic sold on the sidelines.

Take advantage of the rebound by checking out our Top 9 Market-Beating Stocks. This is a curated list of our High Quality stocks that have generated a market-beating return of 183% over the last five years (as of March 31st 2025).

Stocks that made our list in 2020 include now familiar names such as Nvidia (+1,545% between March 2020 and March 2025) as well as under-the-radar businesses like the once-small-cap company Comfort Systems (+782% five-year return). Find your next big winner with StockStory today.

StockStory is growing and hiring equity analyst and marketing roles. Are you a 0 to 1 builder passionate about the markets and AI? See the open roles here.