August 27, 2024
Toby Hong Xu
Chief Financial Officer
Alibaba Group Holding Limited
26/F Tower One, Times Square
1 Matheson Street, Causeway Bay
Hong Kong S.A.R. People s Republic of China
Re: Alibaba Group Holding Limited
Form 20-F for Fiscal Year Ended March 31, 2024
File No. 001-36614
Dear Toby Hong Xu:
We have reviewed your filing and have the following comment(s).
Please respond to this letter within ten business days by providing the
requested
information or advise us as soon as possible when you will respond. If you do
not believe a
comment applies to your facts and circumstances, please tell us why in your
response.
After reviewing your response to this letter, we may have additional
comments.
Form 20-F for Fiscal Year Ended March 31, 2024
Letter from Our Chairman and Our CEO to Shareholders
Capital Management, page iii
1. You present free cash flow, a non-GAAP financial measure, without
disclosing its most
directly comparable GAAP measure, net cash provided by operating
activities, with equal
or greater prominence. Please revise your disclosure in accordance with
the guidance in
Item 10(e)(1)(i)(A) of Regulation S-K.
Item 5. Operating and Financial Review and Prospects
Non-GAAP Measures, page 131
2. Refer to footnote (1) to your reconciliation of diluted earnings per
share/ADS to non-
GAAP diluted earnings per share/ADS on page 133. You refer to the
non-GAAP
adjustments presented in your reconciliation of net income to non-GAAP
net income for
the description of all components included in the non-GAAP
adjustments to net income
attributable to ordinary shareholders line item. However, the
non-GAAP adjustments to
net income attributable to ordinary shareholders amounts are
inconsistent with the total
August 27, 2024
Page 2
of adjustments to reconcile net income to non-GAAP net income in all
periods presented.
Please tell us and expand footnote (1) to describe the difference
between the "non-GAAP
adjustments to net income attributable to ordinary shares" and the
adjustments to reconcile
net income to non-GAAP net income.
3. Your presentation of total segments adjusted EBITA on pages 131 and 135
appears to be
a non-GAAP measure and should be reconciled to its most directly
comparable GAAP
measure. However, once reconciled it would appear such measure may
include
adjustments that are inconsistent with the applicable non-GAAP guidance.
In this regard,
adjusting for corporate unallocated expenses appears to present a
non-GAAP measure
that excludes normal, recurring, cash operating expenses. Therefore,
please revise to
remove this measure from your filings. Refer to Item 10(e)(1)(i)(B) of
Regulation S-K
and Questions 104.04 and 100.01 of the Non-GAAP Financial Measures
Compliance
and Disclosure Interpretations.
We remind you that the company and its management are responsible for
the accuracy
and adequacy of their disclosures, notwithstanding any review, comments, action
or absence of
action by the staff.
Please contact Valeria Franks at 202-551-7705 or Suying Li at
202-551-3335 with any
questions.
Sincerely,
Division of
Corporation Finance
Office of Trade &
Services