ECONOMIC AND FINANCIAL ANALYSIS OF E-COMMERCE DURING A PERIOD OF ECONOMIC CRISIS IN BRAZIL (2014-2019)

Abstract

Changing the concern of consumers has required excellent results from organizations with available resources. In this context, e-commerce, a segment in full growth, presents high billing projections during the years of analysis in which Brazil faced economic recession. Therefore, the objective of this study was to verify, through accounting statement indicators, the economic and financial performance of the 5 largest publicly traded companies - B2W, Magazine Luiza, Via Varejo, Lojas Renner and Saraiva - that operate in electronic commerce, during the period of economic recession faced by the country. In the theoretical section, the main financial and economic indicators were addressed and a brief history of e-commerce in Brazil was portrayed. Furthermore, the analysis of the indicators of these companies in the period from 2014 to 2019 has been discussed. It was found that the companies had an increase in revenue, even during the recession period, but with an irrelevant performance in the net result. The main factors of this effect were: the need to finance their operations with onerous short-term resources, which entails financial expenses, leading to greater indebtedness with third-party capital in the short term. The low gross margin has also been noticed due to the cost of goods sold, and, finally, the increase in operating expenses and the high level of investment in distribution and logistics.