BEIJING, May 17, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Zhihu Inc. ("Zhihu"
or the "Company") (NYSE: ZH), the operator of Zhihu, a leading
online content community in China,
today announced its unaudited financial results for the first
quarter ended March 31, 2021.
First Quarter 2021 Highlights
- Average monthly active users
(MAUs)[1] reached 85.0 million in
the first quarter of 2021, representing a growth of 37.7% over the
first quarter of 2020.
- Average monthly paying
members[2] reached 4.0 million in
the first quarter of 2021, representing a growth of 137.8% over the
first quarter of 2020.
- Total revenues were RMB478.3
million (US$73.0 million) in
the first quarter of 2021, representing a growth of 154.2% over the
first quarter of 2020.
- Gross Profit was RMB272.7
million (US$41.6 million) in
the first quarter of 2021, representing a growth of 248.5% over the
first quarter of 2020.
- Gross margin increased to 57.0% for the first quarter
from 41.6% for the same period of last year.
"We started Zhihu ten years ago with the belief that everyone
has a wealth of knowledge, experience, and insights, irrespective
of background or education. We successfully completed our initial
public offering and became a public company listed on the New York
Stock exchange during the first quarter of 2021, which we believe
is both a milestone and the starting point of a new journey for
Zhihu." said Mr. Yuan Zhou, Chairman of the Board and Chief
Executive Officer of Zhihu. "We booked strong growth and delivered
a set of solid results in the first quarter of 2021, reflecting our
firm commitment to executing our content-centric growth strategy
and monetization approach. We also celebrated Zhihu's 10th
anniversary as we continued to solidify and strengthen Zhihu's
brand image. We also continued to execute our video-lization
strategy, and expect that our community will further benefit from
an enriching content portfolio coupled with enhanced content
creation and user engagement. We are confident in our prospects and
our strong capability to honor our commitment to our users, content
creators, and business partners."
Mr. Wei Sun, Chief Financial
Officer of Zhihu, added, "In the first quarter of 2021, we recorded
a total revenue of RMB478.3 million,
reflecting a 154.2% growth over the same period 2020. Our average
MAUs reached 85.0 million, representing an increase of 37.7% over
the same period of 2020, as our user base continued to rapidly
grow. Our gross margin increased to 57.0% from 41.6% in the first
quarter of 2020. We are very pleased with our achievements for the
first quarter of 2021 and we expect to continue to successfully
implement our content centric growth and monetization strategy with
our further enhanced financial strengths after the completion of
our IPO."
First Quarter 2021 Financial Results
Total revenues were RMB478.3
million (US$73.0 million) for
the first quarter of 2021, representing an increase of 154.2% from
RMB188.2 million for the same period
of 2020. The increase was due to increases from all of our business
lines.
Advertising revenue was RMB213.7
million (US$32.6 million) for
the first quarter of 2021, representing an increase of 70.1% from
RMB125.6 million for the same period
of 2020. The year-over-year increase was primarily attributable to
the continued expansion of our user base coupled with an increase
in average advertising revenue generated per MAU.
Paid membership revenue was RMB126.6 million (US$19.3
million) for the first quarter of 2021, representing an
increase of 127.0% from RMB55.8
million for the same period of 2020. The year-over-year
increase was primarily attributable to an increase in our overall
user base coupled with an enhanced paying ratio.
Content-commerce solutions revenue was RMB120.8
million (US$18.4 million) for the
first quarter of 2021, which increased from RMB1.1 million in the first quarter of 2020,
demonstrating strong growth momentum in the business line. We
formally launched our pioneering content-commerce solutions in
early 2020. The year-over-year growth was primarily driven by the
rapid increases of both our user base and average content-commerce
solutions revenue per MAU.
Other revenues were RMB17.1
million (US$2.6 million) for
the first quarter of 2021, compared with RMB5.7 million for the same period of 2020. The
year-over-year increase was primarily attributable to the continued
growth of our online education and e-commerce services.
Cost of revenues increased to RMB205.6 million (US$31.4
million) for the first quarter of 2021 from RMB109.9 million for the same period of 2020. The
increase was primarily due to increased execution costs for our
advertising services and content-related costs. The rapid growth in
user traffic in the quarter also resulted in increases in our cloud
services and bandwidth costs.
Gross profit was RMB272.7
million (US$41.6 million) for
the first quarter of 2021, compared with a gross profit of
RMB78.3 million for the same period
of 2020.
Gross margin for the first quarter of 2021 was 57.0%,
compared to 41.6% for the same period of 2020.
Total operating expenses were RMB615.1 million (US$93.9
million) for the first quarter of 2021, compared with
RMB289.2 million for the same period
of 2020.
Selling and marketing expenses were RMB346.6 million (US$52.9
million) for the first quarter of 2021, compared with
RMB125.4 million in the first quarter
of 2020. The increase was primarily due to the increased expenses
in promotion and advertising activities to strengthen our brand
recognition.
Research and development expenses were RMB106.3 million (US$16.2
million) for the first quarter of 2021, compared with
RMB86.6 million for the same period
of 2020. The increase was primarily due to the increased headcount
in our research and development personnel as we continued to invest
in technical infrastructure and development.
General and administrative expenses were RMB162.2 million (US$24.8
million) for the first quarter of 2021, compared with
RMB77.1 million for the same period
of 2020. The increase was primarily due to the increased
share-based compensation expenses.
Loss from operations was RMB342.5
million (US$52.3 million) for
the first quarter of 2021, compared with RMB210.9 million for the same period of
2020.
Net loss was RMB324.7
million (US$49.6 million) for
the first quarter of 2021, compared with RMB201.3 million for the same period of 2020.
Adjusted net loss
(non-GAAP)[3] was RMB193.6 million (US$29.5
million) for the first quarter of 2021, compared with
RMB161.8 million for the same period
of 2020.
Basic and diluted net loss per ADS was RMB3.46 (US$0.53)
for the first quarter of 2021, compared with RMB2.87 in the same period of 2020.
Cash and cash equivalents, term deposits and short-term
investments
As of March 31, 2021, the Company
had cash and cash equivalents, term deposits and short-term
investments of RMB7,960.4 million
(US$1,215.0 million), compared with
RMB3,096.7 million as of December 31, 2020. The increase was primarily due
to the net proceeds from the Company's initial public offering and
the concurrent private placements completed in March 2021.
Recent Development
In March 2021, the Company
completed its initial public offering (the "IPO") on the New York
Stock Exchange. During the IPO, the Company sold a total of
55,000,000 ADSs, with two ADSs representing one Class A ordinary
share of the Company with par value of US$0.000125 per share. In addition, the Company
sold and issued 13,157,892 Class A ordinary shares in the
concurrent private placements to certain investors based on the IPO
price of US$9.50 per ADS. The Company
received a total of approximately US$737.1
million of net proceeds after deducting the underwriter
commissions and relevant offering expenses.
In April 2021, the underwriters
exercised their option to purchase 259,904 additional ADSs and
we received a total of approximately US$2.3
million of net proceeds after deducting the underwriter
commissions.
Outlook
For the second quarter of 2021, the Company currently expects
its total revenues to be between RMB622
million (US$94.9 million) and
RMB627 million (US$95.7 million). The above outlook is based on
the current market condition and reflects the Company's preliminary
estimates, which are all subject to change.
[1] MAUs refers to the sum
of the number of mobile devices that launch our mobile app 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.
|
[2] Average monthly paying
members for a period is calculated by dividing the sum of monthly
paying members for each month during the specified period by the
number of months in such period.
|
[3]Adjusted net loss is a
non-GAAP financial measure. For more information on the non-GAAP
financial measure, please see the section of "Use of Non-GAAP
Financial Measure" and the table captioned "Unaudited
Reconciliations of GAAP and Non-GAAP Results" set forth at the end
of this press release.
|
Conference Call
The Company's management will host an earnings conference call
at 8:00 a.m. U.S. Eastern Time on
May 17, 2021 (8:00 p.m. Beijing/Hong
Kong time on May 17,
2021).
Dial-in details for the earnings conference call are as
follows:
United
States:
|
+1-888-317-6003
|
International:
|
+1-412-317-6061
|
Hong Kong,
China:
|
800-963-976
|
Mainland
China:
|
400-120-6115
|
Participant
code:
|
7287305
|
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 May 24,
2021, by dialing the following telephone numbers:
United
States:
|
+1-877-344-7529
|
International:
|
+1-412-317-0088
|
Replay Access
Code:
|
10155887
|
About Zhihu Inc.
Zhihu Inc. (NYSE: ZH) is the operator of Zhihu, a leading online
content community in China,
dedicated to empowering people to share knowledge, experience, and
insights, and to find their own answers. Zhihu fosters a vibrant
online community where users contribute and engage while respecting
diversity and valuing constructiveness by promoting a culture of
sincerity, expertise, and respect developed through years of
cultivation. Zhihu is China's
largest Q&A-inspired online community and one of the top five
Chinese comprehensive online content communities, both in terms of
average mobile monthly average users and revenue in 2020. Zhihu is
also recognized as the most trustworthy online content community
and widely regarded as offering the highest quality content in
China, according to a survey
conducted by CIC. For more information, please visit
https://ir.zhihu.com.
Use of Non-GAAP Financial Measure
In evaluating the business, the Company considers and uses
adjusted net loss, a non-GAAP financial measure, to supplement the
review and assessment of its operating performance. The Company
defines adjusted net loss as net loss adjusted for the impact of
share-based compensation expenses, which are non-cash expenses and
are partially discretionary in nature. The Company believes that
the non-GAAP measure facilitates 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 measure provides
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 measure is not defined under U.S. GAAP
and is not presented in accordance with U.S. GAAP. The presentation
of the non-GAAP financial measure may not be comparable to
similarly titled measure presented by other companies. The use of
the non-GAAP measure has limitations as an analytical tool, and
investors should not consider it in isolation from, or as a
substitute for analysis of, our results of operations or financial
condition as reported under U.S. GAAP. For more information on the
non-GAAP financial measure, please see the tables captioned
"Unaudited Reconciliations of GAAP and Non-GAAP Results" set forth
at the end of this press release.
Exchange Rate Information
This announcement contains translations of certain RMB amounts
into U.S. dollars at a specified rate solely for the convenience of
the reader. Unless otherwise noted, all translations from RMB
to U.S. dollars were made at a rate of RMB6.5518 to US$1.00, the exchange rate in effect as of
March 31, 2021 as set forth in the
H.10 statistical release of the Federal Reserve Board.
Safe Harbor Statement
This announcement contains forward-looking statements. These
statements are made under the "safe harbor" provisions of the U.S.
Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Statements that
are not historical facts, including statements about the Company's
beliefs and expectations, are forward-looking statements.
Forward-looking statements involve inherent risks and
uncertainties, and a number of factors could cause actual results
to differ materially from those contained in any forward-looking
statement. In some cases, forward-looking statements can be
identified by words or phrases such as "may," "will," "expect,"
"anticipate," "target," "aim," "estimate," "intend," "plan,"
"believe," "potential," "continue," "is/are likely to," or other
similar expressions. Further information regarding these and other
risks, uncertainties or factors is included in the Company's
filings with the SEC. All information provided in this press
release is as of the date of this press release, and the Company
does not undertake any duty to update such information, except as
required under applicable law.
For investor and media inquiries, please contact:
In China:
Zhihu Inc.
Email: ir@zhihu.com
The Piacente Group, Inc.
Helen Wu
Tel: +86-10-6508-0677
Email: zhihu@tpg-ir.com
In the United States:
The Piacente Group, Inc.
Brandi Piacente
Phone: +1-212-481-2050
Email: zhihu@tpg-ir.com
ZHIHU
INC.
|
UNAUDITED
CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS
|
(All amounts in
thousands, except share, ADS, per share data and per ADS
data)
|
|
|
For the Three
Months Ended
|
|
March
31,
2020
|
|
December
31,
2020
|
|
March
31,
2021
|
|
RMB
|
|
RMB
|
|
RMB
|
|
US$
|
Revenues:
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Advertising
|
125,629
|
|
319,172
|
|
213,730
|
|
32,621
|
Paid
membership
|
55,759
|
|
104,372
|
|
126,572
|
|
19,319
|
Content-commerce
solutions
|
1,067
|
|
76,485
|
|
120,845
|
|
18,445
|
Others
|
5,706
|
|
19,778
|
|
17,139
|
|
2,616
|
Total
revenues
|
188,161
|
|
519,807
|
|
478,286
|
|
73,001
|
Cost of
revenues
|
(109,911)
|
|
(186,721)
|
|
(205,616)
|
|
(31,383)
|
Gross
profit
|
78,250
|
|
333,086
|
|
272,670
|
|
41,618
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Selling and marketing
expenses
|
(125,423)
|
|
(242,937)
|
|
(346,633)
|
|
(52,907)
|
Research and
development expenses
|
(86,618)
|
|
(82,359)
|
|
(106,302)
|
|
(16,225)
|
General and
administrative expenses
|
(77,134)
|
|
(112,297)
|
|
(162,196)
|
|
(24,756)
|
Total operating
expenses
|
(289,175)
|
|
(437,593)
|
|
(615,131)
|
|
(93,888)
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Loss from
operations
|
(210,925)
|
|
(104,507)
|
|
(342,461)
|
|
(52,270)
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Other
income/(expenses):
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Investment
income
|
15,382
|
|
11,989
|
|
9,662
|
|
1,475
|
Interest
income
|
9,870
|
|
4,135
|
|
3,327
|
|
508
|
Fair value change of
financial instrument
|
(381)
|
|
(49,246)
|
|
-
|
|
-
|
Exchange
(losses)/gains
|
(15,281)
|
|
41,786
|
|
(693)
|
|
(106)
|
Others,
net
|
701
|
|
6,271
|
|
6,009
|
|
917
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Loss before income
tax
|
(200,634)
|
|
(89,572)
|
|
(324,156)
|
|
(49,476)
|
Income tax
expense
|
(703)
|
|
(485)
|
|
(537)
|
|
(82)
|
Net
loss
|
(201,337)
|
|
(90,057)
|
|
(324,693)
|
|
(49,558)
|
Accretions of
convertible redeemable
preferred shares to redemption
value
|
(165,511)
|
|
(169,783)
|
|
(170,585)
|
|
(26,036)
|
Net loss
attributable to Zhihu Inc.'s
shareholders
|
(366,848)
|
|
(259,840)
|
|
(495,278)
|
|
(75,594)
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Net loss per
share
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Basic
|
(5.73)
|
|
(3.94)
|
|
(6.93)
|
|
(1.06)
|
Diluted
|
(5.73)
|
|
(3.94)
|
|
(6.93)
|
|
(1.06)
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Net loss per ADS
(Two ADSs represent
one Class A ordinary share)
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Basic
|
(2.87)
|
|
(1.97)
|
|
(3.46)
|
|
(0.53)
|
Diluted
|
(2.87)
|
|
(1.97)
|
|
(3.46)
|
|
(0.53)
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Weighted average
number of ordinary
shares outstanding
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Basic
|
63,984,168
|
|
65,948,861
|
|
71,493,738
|
|
71,493,738
|
Diluted
|
63,984,168
|
|
65,948,861
|
|
71,493,738
|
|
71,493,738
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
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
|
|
March
31,
2020
|
|
December
31,
2020
|
|
March
31,
2021
|
|
RMB
|
|
RMB
|
|
RMB
|
|
US$
|
Share-based
compensation expenses included in:
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Cost of
revenues
|
2,181
|
|
(441)
|
|
2,232
|
|
341
|
Selling and marketing
expenses
|
5,652
|
|
2,044
|
|
4,803
|
|
733
|
Research and
development expenses
|
7,449
|
|
4,613
|
|
7,608
|
|
1,161
|
General and
administrative expenses
|
24,305
|
|
57,537
|
|
116,484
|
|
17,779
|
ZHIHU
INC.
|
UNAUDITED
CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS
|
(All amounts in
thousands, except share, ADS, per share data and per ADS
data)
|
|
|
As of December
31,
2020
|
|
As of March
31,
2021
|
|
RMB
|
|
RMB
|
|
US$
|
ASSETS
|
|
|
|
|
|
Current
assets:
|
|
|
|
|
|
Cash and cash
equivalents
|
957,820
|
|
6,005,655
|
|
916,642
|
Term
deposits
|
1,092,921
|
|
716,272
|
|
109,324
|
Short-term
investments
|
1,046,000
|
|
1,074,154
|
|
163,948
|
Trade
receivables
|
486,046
|
|
487,942
|
|
74,475
|
Amounts due from
related parties
|
13,843
|
|
17,053
|
|
2,603
|
Prepayments and other
current assets
|
123,536
|
|
99,995
|
|
15,262
|
Total current
assets
|
3,720,166
|
|
8,401,071
|
|
1,282,254
|
Non-current
assets:
|
|
|
|
|
|
Property and
equipment, net
|
8,105
|
|
6,820
|
|
1,041
|
Intangible assets,
net
|
23,478
|
|
20,655
|
|
3,153
|
Long-term
investments
|
-
|
|
19,714
|
|
3,009
|
Term
deposits
|
-
|
|
164,282
|
|
25,074
|
Right-of-use assets
|
3,241
|
|
79,063
|
|
12,067
|
Other non-current
assets
|
6,451
|
|
4,705
|
|
718
|
Total non-current
assets
|
41,275
|
|
295,239
|
|
45,062
|
Total
assets
|
3,761,441
|
|
8,696,310
|
|
1,327,316
|
LIABILITIES,
MEZZANINE EQUITY AND
SHAREHOLDERS'
(DEFICIT)/EQUITY
|
|
|
|
|
|
Current
liabilities
|
|
|
|
|
|
Accounts payables and
accrued liabilities
|
501,848
|
|
601,376
|
|
91,788
|
Salary and welfare
payables
|
231,847
|
|
253,457
|
|
38,685
|
Taxes
payables
|
7,066
|
|
4,087
|
|
624
|
Contract
liabilities
|
159,995
|
|
180,738
|
|
27,586
|
Amounts due to related
parties
|
45,983
|
|
58,848
|
|
8,982
|
Short term lease
liabilities
|
2,893
|
|
23,904
|
|
3,648
|
Other current
liabilities
|
64,936
|
|
111,704
|
|
17,049
|
Total current
liabilities
|
1,014,568
|
|
1,234,114
|
|
188,362
|
Non-current
liabilities
|
|
|
|
|
|
Long term lease
liabilities
|
-
|
|
49,112
|
|
7,496
|
Total non-current
liabilities
|
-
|
|
49,112
|
|
7,496
|
Total
liabilities
|
1,014,568
|
|
1,283,226
|
|
195,858
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Total mezzanine
equity
|
7,891,348
|
|
-
|
|
-
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Total
shareholders' (deficit)/equity
|
(5,144,475)
|
|
7,413,084
|
|
1,131,458
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Total liabilities,
mezzanine equity and shareholders'
(deficit)/equity
|
3,761,441
|
|
8,696,310
|
|
1,327,316
|
ZHIHU
INC.
|
UNAUDITED
RECONCILIATIONS OF GAAP AND NON-GAAP RESULTS
|
(All amounts in
thousands, except share, ADS, per share data and per ADS
data)
|
|
|
For the Three
Months Ended
|
|
March
31,
2020
|
|
December
31,
2020
|
|
March
31,
2021
|
|
RMB
|
|
RMB
|
|
RMB
|
|
US$
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Net
loss
|
(201,337)
|
|
(90,057)
|
|
(324,693)
|
|
(49,558)
|
Add:
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Share-based
compensation expenses
|
39,587
|
|
63,753
|
|
131,127
|
|
20,014
|
Adjusted net
loss
|
(161,750)
|
|
(26,304)
|
|
(193,566)
|
|
(29,544)
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
View original
content:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/zhihu-inc-reports-first-quarter-2021-unaudited-financial-results-301292334.html
SOURCE Zhihu Inc.