Zhihu Inc. Reports Unaudited Fourth Quarter and Fiscal Year 2023 Financial Results
- Total revenues increased by 2.2% in Q4 and 16.5% in FY 2023.
- Net loss narrowed by 42.6% in Q4 and 46.8% in FY 2023.
- MAUs reached 99.0 million in Q4.
- Zhihu emphasized revenue growth, efficiency improvement, and content strategy.
- Gross margin expanded to 59.1% in Q4 and 54.7% in FY 2023.
- Net loss and adjusted net loss still exist despite narrowing.
- Marketing services revenue decreased in Q4.
- General and administrative expenses decreased, possibly affecting operational efficiency.
Insights
The reported revenue growth of Zhihu Inc. suggests a positive trend, with a 16.5% increase in annual revenue and a 2.2% quarterly increase. This growth, albeit modest on a quarterly basis, is significant on an annual scale, indicating a potentially positive market response. The expansion of the gross margin to 59.1% for the quarter and 54.7% for the year reflects improved efficiency in operations and could signal a strong competitive position in the online content community sector. Investors might view the narrowed net loss as a sign of a company moving towards profitability, which could impact the stock positively in the short term.
However, the decrease in marketing services revenue year-over-year raises questions about the sustainability of current revenue streams and the effectiveness of the company's advertising and content-commerce solutions. On the other hand, the substantial growth in paid membership and vocational training revenue highlights successful diversification of revenue sources, which could be a strategic move to stabilize and grow income in the long run.
From a financial perspective, Zhihu's efforts in cost control and operating leverage are evident in the reduced net loss and the decline in general and administrative expenses, which is commendable in a challenging macroeconomic environment. The company's ability to enhance monetization while controlling costs is important for future profitability. The increased gross margin indicates that Zhihu is becoming more effective in converting revenues to profits, which is essential for long-term sustainability.
The share repurchase program is another factor for investors to consider. It reflects the management's confidence in the company's value and could support the stock price. However, the reduction in cash and cash equivalents from the previous year-end could be concerning if it reflects a trend of cash burn that might affect the company's ability to invest in growth opportunities or weather economic downturns.
While Zhihu's narrowed net loss indicates progress towards profitability, the reduced marketing services revenue and the decline in cash reserves could be potential red flags. These factors may point to challenges in user acquisition and retention, as well as the need for continued investment in product and service offerings to maintain market relevance. The growth in paid memberships and vocational training revenue does suggest that Zhihu's strategic focus on these areas is paying off, which might attract investors interested in companies with diversified and growing revenue streams.
Investors should also consider the macroeconomic and competitive environment in China's tech industry, which can be quite volatile and subject to regulatory changes. Zhihu's ability to navigate this landscape will be critical and its emphasis on user experience and content strategy could be key differentiators. The company's trajectory towards profitability will depend on its ability to maintain revenue growth, manage costs effectively and continue to innovate in its offerings.
Fourth Quarter 2023 Highlights
- Total revenues were
RMB1,138.3 million (US ) in the fourth quarter of 2023, representing a$160.3 million 2.2% increase from the same period of 2022. - Gross margin expanded to
59.1% in the fourth quarter of 2023 from56.4% in the same period of 2022. - Net loss was
RMB103.1 million (US ) in the fourth quarter of 2023, narrowed by$14.5 million 42.6% from the same period of 2022. - Adjusted net loss (non-GAAP)[1] was
RMB91.3 million (US ) in the fourth quarter of 2023, narrowed by$12.9 million 31.9% from the same period of 2022. - Average monthly active users (MAUs)[2] reached 99.0 million in the fourth quarter of 2023.
- Average monthly subscribing members[3] reached 14.2 million in the fourth quarter of 2023, representing a
9.2% increase from the same period of 2022.
Fiscal Year 2023 Highlights
- Total revenues were
RMB4,198.9 million (US ) in 2023, representing a$591.4 million 16.5% increase from 2022. - Gross margin expanded to
54.7% in 2023 from50.2% in 2022. - Net loss was
RMB839.5 million (US ) in 2023, narrowed by$118.2 million 46.8% from 2022. - Adjusted net loss (non-GAAP)[1] was
RMB659.1 million (US ) in 2023, narrowed by$92.8 million 44.9% from 2022.
"In the fourth quarter of 2023, we successfully navigated a challenging macroeconomic and competitive environment and achieved meaningful revenue growth and efficiency improvement through our multi-engine monetization approach, bolstered by our valuable community ecosystem," said Mr. Yuan Zhou, chairman and chief executive officer of Zhihu. "We also honed our content strategy to fortify our position as a trustworthy online content community. By prioritizing user experience and improving our strategic execution, cost control and overall efficiency, we have set the stage for sustainable growth and continued value creation for our users and stakeholders."
Mr. Han Wang, chief financial officer of Zhihu, added, "While we faced a myriad of challenges in 2023, we remained resilient and dedicated to our multi-engine monetization strategy. As a result, our total revenues for the fourth quarter and full year increased by
Fourth Quarter 2023 Financial Results
Total revenues were
Marketing services revenue[4] was
Paid membership revenue was
Vocational training revenue was
Other revenues were
Cost of revenues decreased by
Gross profit increased by
Total operating expenses were
Selling and marketing expenses increased to
Research and development expenses increased to
General and administrative expenses decreased by
Loss from operations was narrowed by
Adjusted loss from operations (non-GAAP)[1] decreased to
Net loss was narrowed by
Adjusted net loss (non-GAAP)[1] was narrowed by
Diluted net loss per American depositary share ("ADS") was
Cash and cash equivalents, term deposits and short-term investments
As of December 31, 2023, the Company had cash and cash equivalents, term deposits and short-term investments of
Fiscal Year 2023 Financial Results
Total revenues were
Marketing services revenue[4] was
Paid membership revenue was
Vocational training revenue was
Other revenues were
Cost of revenues increased to
Gross profit increased by
Total operating expenses decreased to
Selling and marketing expenses were
Research and development expenses increased to
General and administrative expenses decreased to
Loss from operations was narrowed by
Adjusted loss from operations (non-GAAP)[1] was narrowed by
Net loss was narrowed by
Adjusted net loss (non-GAAP)[1] was narrowed by
Diluted net loss per ADS was
Share Repurchase Program
As of December 31, 2023, 26.3 million Class A ordinary shares (including Class A ordinary shares underlying the ADSs) had been repurchased for a total price of
[1] Adjusted loss from operations and adjusted net loss are non-GAAP financial measures. For more information on the non-GAAP financial measures, please see the section of "Use of Non-GAAP Financial Measures" and the table captioned "Unaudited Reconciliations of GAAP and Non-GAAP Results" set forth at the end of this press release. |
[2] MAUs refers to the sum of the number of mobile devices that launch our mobile apps at least once in a given month, or mobile MAUs, and the number of logged-in users who visit our PC or mobile website at least once in a given month, after eliminating duplicates. |
[3] Monthly subscribing members refers to the number of our Yan Selection members in a specified month. Average monthly subscribing members for a period is calculated by dividing the sum of monthly subscribing members for each month during the specified period by the number of months in such period. |
[4] Starting with the first quarter of 2023, we report revenues generated from advertising and content-commerce solutions collectively as "marketing services revenue" to better present our business and results of operation in line with our overall strategies. Revenues for the applicable comparison periods of 2022 have been retrospectively re-classified. |
Conference Call
The Company's management will host an earnings conference call at 7:00 a.m.
All participants wishing to join the conference call must pre-register online using the link provided below. Once the pre-registration has been completed, each participant will receive a set of dial-in numbers, a passcode, and a unique registrant ID which can be used to join the conference call. Participants may pre-register at any time, including up to and after the call start time.
Participant Online Registration: https://dpregister.com/sreg/10187223/fbcf65bd2c
Additionally, a live and archived webcast of the conference call will be available on the Company's investor relations website at https://ir.zhihu.com.
A replay of the conference call will be accessible approximately one hour after the conclusion of the live call, until April 2, 2024, by dialing the following telephone numbers:
+1-877-344-7529 | |
International: | +1-412-317-0088 |
Replay Access Code: | 4320125 |
About Zhihu Inc.
Zhihu Inc. (NYSE: ZH; HKEX: 2390) is a leading online content community in
Use of Non-GAAP Financial Measures
In evaluating the business, the Company considers and uses non-GAAP financial measures, such as adjusted loss from operations and adjusted net loss, to supplement the review and assessment of its operating performance. The Company defines non-GAAP financial measures by excluding the impact of share-based compensation expenses, amortization of intangible assets resulting from business acquisitions and the tax effects of the non-GAAP adjustments, which are non-cash expenses. The Company believes that the non-GAAP financial measures facilitate comparisons of operating performance from period to period and company to company by adjusting for potential impacts of items, which the Company's management considers to be indicative of its operating performance. The Company believes that the non-GAAP financial measures provide useful information to investors and others in understanding and evaluating the Company's consolidated results of operations in the same manner as it helps the Company's management.
The non-GAAP financial measures are not defined under
Exchange Rate Information
This announcement contains translations of certain Renminbi amounts into
Safe Harbor Statement
This announcement contains forward-looking statements. These statements are made under the "safe harbor" provisions of the
For investor and media inquiries, please contact:
In
Zhihu Inc.
Email: ir@zhihu.com
Piacente Financial Communications
Helen Wu
Tel: +86-10-6508-0677
Email: zhihu@tpg-ir.com
In
Piacente Financial Communications
Brandi Piacente
Phone: +1-212-481-2050
Email: zhihu@tpg-ir.com
ZHIHU INC. | |||||||||||||
UNAUDITED CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS | |||||||||||||
(All amounts in thousands, except share, ADS, per share data and per ADS data) | |||||||||||||
For the Three Months Ended | For the Year Ended | ||||||||||||
December 31, 2022 | September 30, 2023 | December 31, 2023 | December 31, 2022 | December 31, 2023 | |||||||||
RMB | RMB | RMB | US$ | RMB | RMB | US$ | |||||||
Revenues: | |||||||||||||
Marketing services | 572,387 | 382,962 | 465,153 | 65,515 | 1,956,480 | 1,652,992 | 232,819 | ||||||
Paid membership | 402,531 | 466,784 | 455,906 | 64,213 | 1,230,804 | 1,826,557 | 257,265 | ||||||
Vocational training | 84,591 | 144,795 | 169,272 | 23,841 | 248,266 | 565,585 | 79,661 | ||||||
Others | 54,456 | 27,622 | 47,966 | 6,756 | 169,369 | 153,755 | 21,656 | ||||||
Total revenues | 1,113,965 | 1,022,163 | 1,138,297 | 160,325 | 3,604,919 | 4,198,889 | 591,401 | ||||||
Cost of revenues | (485,442) | (473,712) | (465,197) | (65,522) | (1,796,867) | (1,903,041) | (268,038) | ||||||
Gross profit | 628,523 | 548,451 | 673,100 | 94,803 | 1,808,052 | 2,295,848 | 323,363 | ||||||
Selling and marketing expenses | (509,229) | (534,328) | (527,604) | (74,311) | (2,026,468) | (2,048,090) | (288,467) | ||||||
Research and development | (212,495) | (249,662) | (232,585) | (32,759) | (763,362) | (901,452) | (126,967) | ||||||
General and administrative | (123,107) | (114,564) | (91,069) | (12,827) | (621,973) | (418,531) | (58,949) | ||||||
Total operating expenses | (844,831) | (898,554) | (851,258) | (119,897) | (3,411,803) | (3,368,073) | (474,383) | ||||||
Loss from operations | (216,308) | (350,103) | (178,158) | (25,094) | (1,603,751) | (1,072,225) | (151,020) | ||||||
Other income/(expenses): | |||||||||||||
Investment income | 5,922 | 11,617 | 12,279 | 1,729 | 70,380 | 41,695 | 5,873 | ||||||
Interest income | 33,671 | 40,363 | 38,828 | 5,469 | 68,104 | 158,671 | 22,348 | ||||||
Fair value change of financial | (4,619) | (7,352) | 14,780 | 2,082 | (176,685) | (5,170) | (728) | ||||||
Exchange (losses)/gains | (1,524) | (393) | (937) | (132) | 71,749 | 97 | 14 | ||||||
Others, net | 6,099 | 27,227 | 15,032 | 2,117 | 5,983 | 49,236 | 6,935 | ||||||
Loss before income tax | (176,759) | (278,641) | (98,176) | (13,829) | (1,564,220) | (827,696) | (116,578) | ||||||
Income tax (expense)/benefit | (2,755) | 256 | (4,929) | (694) | (14,183) | (11,832) | (1,667) | ||||||
Net loss | (179,514) | (278,385) | (103,105) | (14,523) | (1,578,403) | (839,528) | (118,245) | ||||||
Net income attributable to | (164) | (289) | (666) | (94) | (2,754) | (4,113) | (579) | ||||||
Net loss attributable to Zhihu | (179,678) | (278,674) | (103,771) | (14,617) | (1,581,157) | (843,641) | (118,824) | ||||||
Net loss per share | |||||||||||||
Basic | (0.59) | (0.94) | (0.36) | (0.05) | (5.19) | (2.82) | (0.40) | ||||||
Diluted | (0.59) | (0.94) | (0.36) | (0.05) | (5.19) | (2.82) | (0.40) | ||||||
Net loss per ADS (Two ADSs | |||||||||||||
Basic | (0.29) | (0.47) | (0.18) | (0.03) | (2.59) | (1.41) | (0.20) | ||||||
Diluted | (0.29) | (0.47) | (0.18) | (0.03) | (2.59) | (1.41) | (0.20) | ||||||
Weighted average number of | |||||||||||||
Basic | 304,665,906 | 297,742,064 | 291,056,615 | 291,056,615 | 304,836,318 | 299,132,894 | 299,132,894 | ||||||
Diluted | 304,665,906 | 297,742,064 | 291,056,615 | 291,056,615 | 304,836,318 | 299,132,894 | 299,132,894 | ||||||
ZHIHU INC. | |||||||||||||
UNAUDITED CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS (CONTINUED) | |||||||||||||
(All amounts in thousands, except share, ADS, per share data and per ADS data) | |||||||||||||
For the Three Months Ended | For the Year Ended | ||||||||||||
December 31, 2022 | September 30, 2023 | December 31, 2023 | December 31, 2022 | December 31, 2023 | |||||||||
RMB | RMB | RMB | US$ | RMB | RMB | US$ | |||||||
Share-based compensation | |||||||||||||
Cost of revenues | 3,663 | 1,630 | 1,575 | 221 | 11,861 | 9,751 | 1,373 | ||||||
Selling and marketing | 5,019 | 5,741 | (7,001) | (986) | 24,334 | 13,882 | 1,955 | ||||||
Research and development | 15,831 | 13,758 | (57) | (8) | 62,503 | 49,847 | 7,021 | ||||||
General and administrative | 18,032 | 27,662 | 12,983 | 1,829 | 275,197 | 91,176 | 12,842 |
ZHIHU INC. | |||||
UNAUDITED CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS | |||||
(All amounts in thousands) | |||||
As of December 31, 2022 | As of December 31, 2023 | ||||
RMB | RMB | US$ | |||
ASSETS | |||||
Current assets: | |||||
Cash and cash equivalents | 4,525,852 | 2,106,639 | 296,714 | ||
Term deposits | 948,390 | 1,586,469 | 223,449 | ||
Short-term investments | 787,259 | 1,769,822 | 249,274 | ||
Trade receivables | 834,251 | 664,615 | 93,609 | ||
Amounts due from related parties | 24,798 | 18,319 | 2,580 | ||
Prepayments and other current assets | 199,249 | 232,016 | 32,679 | ||
Total current assets | 7,319,799 | 6,377,880 | 898,305 | ||
Non-current assets: | |||||
Property and equipment, net | 7,290 | 10,849 | 1,528 | ||
Intangible assets, net | 80,237 | 122,645 | 17,274 | ||
Goodwill | 126,344 | 191,077 | 26,913 | ||
Long-term investments | - | 44,621 | 6,285 | ||
Right-of-use assets | 100,119 | 40,211 | 5,664 | ||
Other non-current assets | 22,450 | 7,989 | 1,125 | ||
Total non-current assets | 336,440 | 417,392 | 58,789 | ||
Total assets | 7,656,239 | 6,795,272 | 957,094 | ||
LIABILITIES AND SHAREHOLDERS' EQUITY | |||||
Current liabilities | |||||
Accounts payable and accrued liabilities | 916,112 | 1,038,531 | 146,274 | ||
Salary and welfare payables | 283,546 | 342,125 | 48,187 | ||
Taxes payables | 25,975 | 21,394 | 3,013 | ||
Contract liabilities | 355,626 | 303,574 | 42,758 | ||
Amounts due to related parties | 24,861 | 26,032 | 3,667 | ||
Short term lease liabilities | 53,190 | 42,089 | 5,929 | ||
Other current liabilities | 165,531 | 171,743 | 24,189 | ||
Total current liabilities | 1,824,841 | 1,945,488 | 274,017 | ||
Non-current liabilities | |||||
Long term lease liabilities | 43,367 | 3,642 | 513 | ||
Deferred tax liabilities | 11,630 | 22,574 | 3,179 | ||
Other non-current liabilities | 82,133 | 121,958 | 17,177 | ||
Total non-current liabilities | 137,130 | 148,174 | 20,869 | ||
Total liabilities | 1,961,971 | 2,093,662 | 294,886 | ||
Total Zhihu Inc.'s shareholders' equity | 5,653,696 | 4,599,810 | 647,870 | ||
Noncontrolling interests | 40,572 | 101,800 | 14,338 | ||
Total shareholders' equity | 5,694,268 | 4,701,610 | 662,208 | ||
Total liabilities and shareholders' equity | 7,656,239 | 6,795,272 | 957,094 |
ZHIHU INC. | |||||||||||||
UNAUDITED RECONCILIATIONS OF GAAP AND NON-GAAP RESULTS | |||||||||||||
(All amounts in thousands) | |||||||||||||
For the Three Months Ended | For the Year Ended | ||||||||||||
December 31, 2022 | September 30, 2023 | December 31, 2023 | December 31, 2022 | December 31, 2023 | |||||||||
RMB | RMB | RMB | US$ | RMB | RMB | US$ | |||||||
Loss from operations | (216,308) | (350,103) | (178,158) | (25,094) | (1,603,751) | (1,072,225) | (151,020) | ||||||
Add: | |||||||||||||
Share-based compensation | 42,545 | 48,791 | 7,500 | 1,056 | 373,895 | 164,656 | 23,191 | ||||||
Amortization of intangible | 3,490 | 5,365 | 5,365 | 756 | 11,053 | 19,585 | 2,758 | ||||||
Adjusted loss from | (170,273) | (295,947) | (165,293) | (23,282) | (1,218,803) | (887,984) | (125,071) | ||||||
Net loss | (179,514) | (278,385) | (103,105) | (14,523) | (1,578,403) | (839,528) | (118,245) | ||||||
Add: | |||||||||||||
Share-based compensation | 42,545 | 48,791 | 7,500 | 1,056 | 373,895 | 164,656 | 23,191 | ||||||
Amortization of intangible | 3,490 | 5,365 | 5,365 | 756 | 11,053 | 19,585 | 2,758 | ||||||
Tax effects on non-GAAP | (600) | (1,069) | (1,069) | (151) | (2,400) | (3,806) | (536) | ||||||
Adjusted net loss | (134,079) | (225,298) | (91,309) | (12,862) | (1,195,855) | (659,093) | (92,832) |
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SOURCE Zhihu Inc.
FAQ
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