Weibo Announces Fourth Quarter and Fiscal Year 2023 Unaudited Financial Results and Dividend
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Insights
The reported financial results of Weibo Corporation provide a mixed picture of the company's performance. On one hand, the 4th quarter revenue growth of 3% year-over-year and the constant currency basis growth are positive indicators, suggesting resilience in Weibo's advertising and marketing services amidst market challenges. However, the full-year revenue decline of 4% indicates headwinds that could be concerning for investors focused on long-term growth trajectories.
It is noteworthy that Weibo's operational efficiency measures, such as the operating cash flow increase of 19% year-over-year, demonstrate a robust financial discipline. The announcement of a special cash dividend of US$200 million signals confidence in the company's liquidity and a commitment to shareholder returns, potentially making the stock more attractive to income-focused investors.
The gain from fair value change of investments and reduction in costs and expenses are also positive developments. However, the increase in income tax expenses and the impact of currency fluctuations highlight external factors affecting profitability. These mixed results suggest that while Weibo is navigating its business environment effectively, it is not immune to macroeconomic pressures, particularly those related to currency exchange rates and tax regimes.
Weibo's user base growth, with an addition of 11 million MAUs and 5 million DAUs year-over-year, is a positive sign for the platform's engagement and market penetration. High mobile usage (95% of MAUs) aligns with global trends towards mobile-first content consumption. This user growth, coupled with the company's product competitiveness and operating efficiency, is crucial for sustaining advertising revenue, which remains the primary source of income for Weibo.
The constant currency basis adjustments made to account for the depreciation of the RMB against the U.S. dollar are significant for international stakeholders, as they provide a clearer picture of the company's performance excluding exchange rate volatility. The decrease in personnel-related costs and fluctuations in compensation expenses related to JM Tech suggest an ongoing internal restructuring that could affect future operational efficiency.
Investors and analysts should monitor Weibo's ability to monetize its growing user base, particularly in light of the competitive landscape in China's social media sector, where innovation and user experience are key drivers of success.
The financial results of Weibo reflect broader economic trends affecting technology companies in China, including currency depreciation and regulatory environments. The RMB's depreciation against the U.S. dollar has a dual impact: it creates headwinds for revenue reported in U.S. dollars, while potentially making Weibo's advertising services more competitive internationally.
The increase in income tax expenses suggests a changing fiscal landscape that could influence net income and cash flows. Weibo's management of these challenges, particularly through operational efficiencies and cost management, will be critical in maintaining profitability.
The special cash dividend announcement amidst these economic conditions could be interpreted as a strategic move to maintain investor confidence, particularly as tech companies globally face scrutiny over growth sustainability. Weibo's ability to navigate these economic pressures while continuing to provide shareholder value will be a key factor in its long-term financial health.
"In 2023, we further improved our product's competitiveness and operating efficiency," said Gaofei Wang, CEO of Weibo. "Our user community expanded this year, as we have reinforced our content ecosystem and enhanced core competitiveness of our products. On monetization front, our advertising business exhibited solid performance this quarter and gradually recovered throughout the year. With our continued focus on operating efficiency and financial discipline, we achieved decent profitability and solid growth of operating cash flow in 2023. As we are committed to driving shareholder value, we are pleased to announce that our board of directors has approved a special cash dividend of
Fourth Quarter 2023 Highlights
- Net revenues were
US , an increase of$463.7 million 3% year-over-year or an increase of5% year-over-year on a constant currency basis [1]. - Advertising and marketing revenues were
US , an increase of$403.7 million 3% year-over-year or an increase of5% year-over-year on a constant currency basis [1]. - Value-added services ("VAS") revenues were
US , an increase of$59.9 million 4% year-over-year or an increase of6% year-over-year on a constant currency basis [1]. - Income from operations was
US , representing an operating margin of$119.0 million 26% . - Net income attributable to Weibo's shareholders was
US and diluted net income per share was$83.2 million US .$0.34 - Non-GAAP income from operations was
US , representing a non-GAAP operating margin of$145.9 million 31% . - Non-GAAP net income attributable to Weibo's shareholders was
US and non-GAAP diluted net income per share was$76.4 million US .$0.31 - Monthly active users ("MAUs") were 598 million in December 2023, a net addition of approximately 11 million users on a year-over-year basis. Mobile MAUs represented
95% of MAUs. - Average daily active users ("DAUs") were 257 million in December 2023, a net addition of approximately 5 million users on a year-over-year basis.
[1] On a constant currency (non-GAAP) basis, we assume that the exchange rate in the fourth quarter of 2023 had been the same as it was in the fourth quarter of 2022, or |
Fiscal Year 2023 Highlights
- Net revenues were
US , a decrease of$1.76 billion 4% year-over-year or an increase of1% year-over-year on a constant currency basis [2]. - Advertising and marketing revenues were
US , a decrease of$1.53 billion 4% year-over-year or an increase of1% year-over-year on a constant currency basis [2]. - VAS revenues were
US , a decrease of$225.8 million 6% year-over-year or a decrease of1% year-over-year on a constant currency basis [2]. - Income from operations was
US , representing an operating margin of$472.9 million 27% . - Net income attributable to Weibo's shareholders was
US and diluted net income per share was$342.6 million US .$1.43 - Non-GAAP income from operations was
US , representing a non-GAAP operating margin of$592.1 million 34% . - Non-GAAP net income attributable to Weibo's shareholders was
US and non-GAAP diluted net income per share was$450.6 million US .$1.88
[2] On a constant currency (non-GAAP) basis, we assume that the average exchange rate of 2023 had been the same as 2022, or |
Fourth Quarter 2023 Financial Results
For the fourth quarter of 2023, Weibo's total net revenues were
Advertising and marketing revenues for the fourth quarter of 2023 were
VAS revenues for the fourth quarter of 2023 were
Costs and expenses for the fourth quarter of 2023 totaled
Income from operations for the fourth quarter of 2023 was
Non-operating income for the fourth quarter of 2023 was
Income tax expenses for the fourth quarter of 2023 were
Net income attributable to Weibo's shareholders for the fourth quarter of 2023 was
As of December 31, 2023, Weibo's cash, cash equivalents and short-term investments totaled
Fiscal Year 2023 Financial Results
For fiscal year 2023, Weibo's total net revenues were
Advertising and marketing revenues for 2023 were
VAS revenues for 2023 were
Costs and expenses for 2023 totaled
Income from operations for 2023 was
Non-operating income for 2023 was
Income tax expenses for 2023 were
Net income attributable to Weibo's shareholders for 2023 was
For fiscal year 2023, cash provided by operating activities was
Recent Developments
Completion of Convertible Senior Notes Offering
In December 2023, the Company completed an offering of convertible senior notes due 2030 in an aggregate principal amount of
Special Cash Dividend
On March 14, 2024, the Company's board of directors has approved a special cash dividend of
Conference Call
Weibo's management team will host a conference call from 7:00 AM to 8:00 AM Eastern Time on March 14, 2024 (or 7:00 PM to 8:00 PM Beijing Time on March 14, 2024) to present an overview of the Company's financial performance and business operations.
Participants who wish to dial in to the teleconference must register through the below public participant link. Dial in and instruction will be in the confirmation email upon registering.
Participants Registration Link: https://register.vevent.com/register/BI7140d89e0c3844dd981dcf7b042efa87
Additionally, a live and archived webcast of this conference call will available at http://ir.weibo.com.
Non-GAAP Financial Measures
This release contains the following non-GAAP financial measures: non-GAAP income from operations, non-GAAP net income attributable to Weibo's shareholders, non-GAAP diluted net income per share attributable to Weibo's shareholders and adjusted EBITDA. These non-GAAP financial measures should be considered in addition to, not as a substitute for, measures of the Company's financial performance prepared in accordance with
The Company's non-GAAP financial measures exclude stock-based compensation, amortization of intangible assets resulting from business acquisitions, non-cash compensation cost to non-controlling interest shareholders, impairment of intangible assets, net results of impairment and provision on investments, gain/loss on sale of investments and fair value change of investments, non-GAAP to GAAP reconciling items on the share of equity method investments, non-GAAP to GAAP reconciling items for the income/loss attributable to non-controlling interests, income tax expense related to the amortization of intangible assets resulting from business acquisitions and fair value change of investments (other non-GAAP to GAAP reconciling items have no tax effect), and amortization of issuance cost of convertible senior notes, unsecured senior notes and long-term loans. Adjusted EBITDA excludes interest income/expense, net, income tax expenses/benefits, and depreciation expenses.
The Company's management uses these non-GAAP financial measures in their financial and operating decision-making, because management believes these measures reflect the Company's ongoing operating performance in a manner that allows more meaningful period-to-period comparisons. The Company believes that these non-GAAP financial measures provide useful information to investors and others in the following ways: (i) in comparing the Company's current financial results with the Company's past financial results in a consistent manner, and (ii) in understanding and evaluating the Company's current operating performance and future prospects in the same manner as management does. The Company also believes that the non-GAAP financial measures provide useful information to both management and investors by excluding certain expenses, gains/losses and other items (i) that are not expected to result in future cash payments or (ii) that are non-recurring in nature or may not be indicative of the Company's core operating results and business outlook.
Use of non-GAAP financial measures has limitations. The Company's non-GAAP financial measures do not include all income and expense items that affect the Company's operations. They may not be comparable to non-GAAP financial measures used by other companies. Accordingly, care should be exercised in understanding how the Company defines its non-GAAP financial measures. Reconciliations of the Company's non-GAAP financial measures to the nearest comparable GAAP measures are set forth in the section below titled "Unaudited Reconciliation of Non-GAAP to GAAP Results."
About Weibo
Weibo is a leading social media for people to create, share and discover content online. Weibo combines the means of public self-expression in real time with a powerful platform for social interaction, content aggregation and content distribution. Any user can create and post a feed and attach multi-media and long-form content. User relationships on Weibo may be asymmetric; any user can follow any other user and add comments to a feed while reposting. This simple, asymmetric and distributed nature of Weibo allows an original feed to become a live viral conversation stream.
Weibo enables its advertising and marketing customers to promote their brands, products and services to users. Weibo offers a wide range of advertising and marketing solutions to companies of all sizes. The Company generates a substantial majority of its revenues from the sale of advertising and marketing services, including the sale of social display advertisement and promoted marketing offerings. Designed with a "mobile first" philosophy, Weibo displays content in a simple information feed format and offers native advertisement that conform to the information feed on our platform. To support the mobile format, we have developed and continuously refining our social interest graph recommendation engine, which enables our customers to perform people marketing and target audiences based on user demographics, social relationships, interests and behaviors, to achieve greater relevance, engagement and marketing effectiveness.
Safe Harbor Statement
This press release contains forward-looking statements. These statements are made under the "safe harbor" provisions of the
Contact:
Investor Relations
Weibo Corporation
Phone: +86 10 5898-3336
Email: ir@staff.weibo.com
WEIBO CORPORATION | |||||||||||
UNAUDITED CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS | |||||||||||
(In thousands of | |||||||||||
Three months ended | Twelve months ended | ||||||||||
December 31, | September 30, | December 31, | December 31, | December 31, | |||||||
2022 | 2023 | 2023 | 2022 | 2023 | |||||||
Net revenues: | |||||||||||
Advertising and marketing | $ 390,544 | $ 389,301 | $ 403,739 | $ 1,596,650 | $ 1,534,014 | ||||||
Value-added services | 57,454 | 52,850 | 59,928 | 239,682 | 225,822 | ||||||
Net revenues | 447,998 | 442,151 | 463,667 | 1,836,332 | 1,759,836 | ||||||
Costs and expenses: | |||||||||||
Cost of revenues (1) | 106,087 | 93,998 | 100,156 | 400,585 | 374,279 | ||||||
Sales and marketing (1) | 122,665 | 109,776 | 139,726 | 477,107 | 461,421 | ||||||
Product development (1) | 99,328 | 82,764 | 67,243 | 415,190 | 333,628 | ||||||
General and administrative (1) | (40,552) | 21,627 | 37,537 | 52,806 | 117,574 | ||||||
Impairment of intangible assets | - | - | - | 10,176 | - | ||||||
Total costs and expenses | 287,528 | 308,165 | 344,662 | 1,355,864 | 1,286,902 | ||||||
Income from operations | 160,470 | 133,986 | 119,005 | 480,468 | 472,934 | ||||||
Non-operating income (loss): | |||||||||||
Investment related income (loss), net | (3,582) | (8,915) | 25,544 | (313,109) | 18,594 | ||||||
Interest and other income (loss), net | (17,508) | (19,498) | 16,713 | (39,273) | 11,254 | ||||||
(21,090) | (28,413) | 42,257 | (352,382) | 29,848 | |||||||
Income before income tax expenses | 139,380 | 105,573 | 161,262 | 128,086 | 502,782 | ||||||
Less: Income tax expenses (benefits) | (18,701) | 25,407 | 72,578 | 30,277 | 145,287 | ||||||
Net income | 158,081 | 80,166 | 88,684 | 97,809 | 357,495 | ||||||
Less: Net income attributable to non-controlling interests | 16,165 | 474 | 808 | 12,254 | 2,095 | ||||||
Accretion to redeemable non-controlling interests | - | 2,203 | 4,646 | - | 12,802 | ||||||
Net income attributable to Weibo's shareholders | $ 141,916 | $ 77,489 | $ 83,230 | $ 85,555 | $ 342,598 | ||||||
Basic net income per share attributable to Weibo's shareholders | $ 0.61 | $ 0.33 | $ 0.35 | $ 0.36 | $ 1.45 | ||||||
Diluted net income per share attributable to Weibo's shareholders | $ 0.60 | $ 0.32 | $ 0.34 | $ 0.36 | $ 1.43 | ||||||
Shares used in computing basic net income per share attributable | |||||||||||
to Weibo's shareholders | 234,040 | 235,842 | 236,311 | 235,164 | 235,560 | ||||||
Shares used in computing diluted net income per share attributable | |||||||||||
to Weibo's shareholders | 238,887 | 238,655 | 246,382 | 236,407 | 239,974 | ||||||
(1) Stock-based compensation in each category: | |||||||||||
Cost of revenues | $ 1,820 | $ 2,308 | $ 1,851 | $ 9,417 | $ 8,933 | ||||||
Sales and marketing | 3,686 | 4,243 | 3,559 | 18,910 | 16,528 | ||||||
Product development | 10,774 | 13,306 | 11,079 | 55,294 | 51,441 | ||||||
General and administrative | 7,097 | 5,834 | 5,259 | 28,092 | 24,229 |
WEIBO CORPORATION | ||||||||
UNAUDITED CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS | ||||||||
(In thousands of | ||||||||
December 31, | December 31, | |||||||
2022 | 2023 | |||||||
Assets | ||||||||
Current assets: | ||||||||
Cash and cash equivalents | $ 2,690,768 | $ 2,584,635 | ||||||
Short-term investments | 480,428 | 641,035 | ||||||
Accounts receivable, net | 502,443 | 440,768 | ||||||
Prepaid expenses and other current assets | 391,502 | 359,881 | ||||||
Amount due from SINA(1) | 487,117 | 486,397 | ||||||
Current assets subtotal | 4,552,258 | 4,512,716 | ||||||
Property and equipment, net | 249,553 | 220,663 | ||||||
Goodwill and intangible assets, net | 245,223 | 300,565 | ||||||
Long-term investments | 993,630 | 1,320,386 | ||||||
Other non-current assets | 1,088,790 | 926,028 | ||||||
Total assets | $ 7,129,454 | $ 7,280,358 | ||||||
Liabilities, Redeemable Non-controlling Interests and Shareholders' Equity | ||||||||
Liabilities: | ||||||||
Current liabilities: | ||||||||
Accounts payable | $ 161,029 | $ 161,493 | ||||||
Accrued expenses and other current liabilities | 923,678 | 666,833 | ||||||
Income tax payable | 55,282 | 94,507 | ||||||
Deferred revenues | 79,949 | 75,187 | ||||||
Unsecured senior notes | - | 799,325 | ||||||
Current liabilities subtotal | 1,219,938 | 1,797,345 | ||||||
Long-term liabilities: | ||||||||
Convertible senior notes | - | 317,625 | ||||||
Unsecured senior notes | 1,540,717 | 743,695 | ||||||
Long-term loans | 880,855 | 791,647 | ||||||
Other long-term liabilities | 97,404 | 112,430 | ||||||
Total liabilities | 3,738,914 | 3,762,742 | ||||||
Redeemable non-controlling interests | 45,795 | 68,728 | ||||||
Shareholders' equity : | ||||||||
Weibo shareholders' equity | 3,330,250 | 3,398,735 | ||||||
Non-controlling interests | 14,495 | 50,153 | ||||||
Total shareholders' equity | 3,344,745 | 3,448,888 | ||||||
Total liabilities, redeemable non-controlling interests and | $ 7,129,454 | $ 7,280,358 | ||||||
(1) Included short-term loans to and interest receivable from SINA of |
WEIBO CORPORATION | |||||||||||||||||
UNAUDITED RECONCILIATION OF NON-GAAP TO GAAP RESULTS | |||||||||||||||||
(In thousands of | |||||||||||||||||
Three months ended | Twelve months ended | ||||||||||||||||
December 31, | September 30, | December 31, | December 31, | December 31, | |||||||||||||
2022 | 2023 | 2023 | 2022 | 2023 | |||||||||||||
Income from operations | $ | 160,470 | $ | 133,986 | $ | 119,005 | $ | 480,468 | $ | 472,934 | |||||||
Add: | Stock-based compensation | 23,377 | 25,691 | 21,748 | 111,713 | 101,131 | |||||||||||
Amortization of intangible assets resulting from business acquisitions | 4,367 | 4,209 | 5,103 | 19,394 | 18,022 | ||||||||||||
Reversal of non-cash compensation cost to non-controlling interest shareholders | (36,225) | - | - | (20,638) | - | ||||||||||||
Impairment of intangible assets | - | - | - | 10,176 | - | ||||||||||||
Non-GAAP income from operations | $ | 151,989 | $ | 163,886 | $ | 145,856 | $ | 601,113 | $ | 592,087 | |||||||
Net income attributable to Weibo's shareholders | $ | 141,916 | $ | 77,489 | $ | 83,230 | $ | 85,555 | $ | 342,598 | |||||||
Add: | Stock-based compensation | 23,377 | 25,691 | 21,748 | 111,713 | 101,131 | |||||||||||
Amortization of intangible assets resulting from business acquisitions | 4,367 | 4,209 | 5,103 | 19,394 | 18,022 | ||||||||||||
Reversal of non-cash compensation cost to non-controlling interest shareholders | (36,225) | - | - | (20,638) | - | ||||||||||||
Impairment of intangible assets | - | - | - | 10,176 | - | ||||||||||||
Investment related gain/loss, net (1) | 3,582 | 8,915 | (25,544) | 313,109 | (18,594) | ||||||||||||
Non-GAAP to GAAP reconciling items on the share of equity method investments | 24,662 | 19,430 | (10,547) | 27,076 | 1,804 | ||||||||||||
Non-GAAP to GAAP reconciling items for the income/loss attributable to | 15,005 | (101) | (311) | 9,942 | (725) | ||||||||||||
Tax effects on non-GAAP adjustments (2) | 394 | (645) | (781) | (22,523) | (1,957) | ||||||||||||
Amortization of issuance cost of convertible senior notes, unsecured senior notes | 1,440 | 1,607 | 3,468 | 6,273 | 8,287 | ||||||||||||
Non-GAAP net income attributable to Weibo's shareholders | $ | 178,518 | $ | 136,595 | $ | 76,366 | $ | 540,077 | $ | 450,566 | |||||||
Non-GAAP diluted net income per share attributable to Weibo's shareholders | $ | 0.75 | * | $ | 0.57 | $ | 0.31 | * | $ | 2.27 | * | $ | 1.88 | * | |||
Shares used in computing GAAP diluted net income per share attributable to Weibo's | 238,887 | 238,655 | 246,382 | 236,407 | 239,974 | ||||||||||||
Add: | The number of shares for dilution resulted from convertible senior notes (3) | - | - | - | 5,909 | - | |||||||||||
Shares used in computing non-GAAP diluted net income per share attributable | 238,887 | 238,655 | 246,382 | 242,316 | 239,974 | ||||||||||||
Adjusted EBITDA: | |||||||||||||||||
Net income attributable to Weibo's shareholders | $ | 141,916 | $ | 77,489 | $ | 83,230 | $ | 85,555 | $ | 342,598 | |||||||
Non-GAAP adjustments | 36,602 | 59,106 | (6,864) | 454,522 | 107,968 | ||||||||||||
Non-GAAP net income attributable to Weibo's shareholders | 178,518 | 136,595 | 76,366 | 540,077 | 450,566 | ||||||||||||
Interest expense (income), net | (11,784) | 2,823 | (870) | (40,109) | (6,424) | ||||||||||||
Income tax expenses (benefits) | (19,095) | 26,052 | 73,359 | 52,800 | 147,245 | ||||||||||||
Depreciation expenses | 7,626 | 9,354 | 9,303 | 33,240 | 39,220 | ||||||||||||
Adjusted EBITDA | $ | 155,265 | $ | 174,824 | $ | 158,158 | $ | 586,008 | $ | 630,607 | |||||||
Net revenues | $ | 447,998 | $ | 442,151 | $ | 463,667 | $ | 1,836,332 | $ | 1,759,836 | |||||||
Non-GAAP operating margin | 34 % | 37 % | 31 % | 33 % | 34 % | ||||||||||||
(1) | To adjust impairment and provision on investments, gain/loss on sale of investments and fair value change of investments. | ||||||||||||||||
(2) | To adjust the income tax effects of non-GAAP adjustments, which primarily related to amortization and impairment of intangible assets resulting from business acquisitions and fair | ||||||||||||||||
(3) | To adjust the number of shares for dilution resulted from convertible senior notes which were anti-dilutive under GAAP measures. | ||||||||||||||||
* | Net income attributable to Weibo's shareholders is adjusted for interest expense of convertible senior notes for calculating diluted EPS. |
WEIBO CORPORATION | |||||||||||
UNAUDITED ADDITIONAL INFORMATION | |||||||||||
(In thousands of | |||||||||||
Three months ended | Twelve months ended | ||||||||||
December 31, | September 30, | December 31, | December 31, | December 31, | |||||||
2022 | 2023 | 2023 | 2022 | 2023 | |||||||
Net revenues | |||||||||||
Advertising and marketing | |||||||||||
Non-Ali advertisers | $ 348,271 | $ 367,633 | $ 358,848 | $ 1,489,676 | $ 1,422,406 | ||||||
Alibaba - as an advertiser | 42,273 | 21,668 | 44,891 | 106,974 | 111,608 | ||||||
Subtotal | 390,544 | 389,301 | 403,739 | 1,596,650 | 1,534,014 | ||||||
Value-added services | 57,454 | 52,850 | 59,928 | 239,682 | 225,822 | ||||||
$ 447,998 | $ 442,151 | $ 463,667 | $ 1,836,332 | $ 1,759,836 | |||||||
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SOURCE Weibo Corporation
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