Is Coupang, Inc. (CPNG) A Good Stock To Buy Now?

Is CPNG a good stock to buy? We came across a bullish thesis on Coupang, Inc. on r/stocktradingideas by Variant_Invest. In this article, we will summarize the bulls’ thesis on CPNG. Coupang, Inc.'s share was trading at $20.41 as of April 21st. CPNG’s trailing and forward P/E were 195.55 and 35.34 respectively according to Yahoo Finance.

Coupang, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, owns and operates retail business through its mobile applications and internet websites in South Korea and internationally. CPNG is increasingly generating substantial cash flows that remain underappreciated by the market, largely due to limited investor attention outside Korea.

Its core Product Commerce segment delivered $2.5 billion in adjusted EBITDA last year, highlighting a scaled and genuinely profitable e-commerce operation underpinned by its Rocket Delivery network, which offers next-day or same-day fulfillment across a broad product range.

This logistics capability has evolved into a durable competitive moat, significantly reducing customer churn once users adopt the service. Skepticism primarily stems from the Developing Offerings segment, which includes Eats, Play, and international expansion efforts such as Taiwan, all of which are currently loss-making and weigh on consolidated performance. However, this mirrors the long-term investment strategy employed by Amazon, where strong core cash flows fund adjacent growth initiatives that are initially unprofitable but strategically valuable.

Importantly, Coupang’s domestic dominance provides a solid financial foundation, as South Korea already exhibits high e-commerce penetration, meaning growth is not reliant on behavioral shifts but on deepening engagement and monetization. Future upside is likely to be driven by international expansion, particularly in Taiwan where early execution appears promising, as well as additional revenue layers such as fintech and advertising integrated into its existing ecosystem.

At current valuation levels, the market effectively prices Coupang as a steady, cash-generating core business while assigning minimal value to these growth adjacencies, creating an asymmetrical risk-reward profile with meaningful long-term upside potential.

Previously, we covered a bullish thesis on Coupang, Inc. (CPNG) by Brian Coughlin in April 2025, which highlighted its logistics moat, infrastructure advantage, and long-term growth from market dominance. CPNG's stock price has depreciated by approximately 4.58% since our coverage. Variant_Invest shares a similar view but emphasizes on strong cash flow generation and underappreciated core profitability with optionality from adjacencies.

Coupang, Inc. is not on our list of the 40 Most Popular Stocks Among Hedge Funds. As per our database, 94 hedge fund portfolios held CPNG at the end of the fourth quarter which was 83 in the previous quarter. While we acknowledge the risk and potential of CPNG as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that some AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns and doing so within a shorter time frame. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than CPNG and that has 10,000% upside potential, check out our report about this cheapest AI stock.