Bilibili achieved quarterly profitability for the first time in Q4 last year, with annual revenue increasing by 19% year-on-year, and its US stock pre-market rose nearly 7% | Earnings Report Insights

In the fourth quarter, Bilibili's high-margin advertising and mobile gaming businesses experienced strong growth, driving the gross margin up by 10 percentage points to 36.1%, achieving quarterly profitability for the first time.

On February 20th, Thursday, Bilibili released its fourth quarter and full-year results for 2024, ending December 31.

Key financial data is as follows:

• Total net revenue: Q4 revenue was RMB 7.734 billion (USD 1.060 billion), a year-on-year increase of 26%, exceeding market expectations of RMB 7.64 billion; total revenue for the year was RMB 26.83 billion, a year-on-year increase of 19%.
• Gross profit: Q4 gross profit was RMB 2.788 billion (USD 382 million), a year-on-year increase of 68%; annual gross profit was RMB 8.774 billion (USD 1.202 billion), a year-on-year increase of 61%.
• Gross margin: Q4 gross margin was 36.1%, and the annual gross margin was 32.7%, both up from 26.1% in Q4 2023 and 24.2% in 2023.
• Net loss: Q4 net loss was RMB 89 million, compared to a net loss of RMB 1.297 billion in the same period last year; the annual net loss was RMB 1.364 billion, a year-on-year reduction of 72%.
• Adjusted net profit: Q4 adjusted net profit was RMB 452 million, compared to a loss of RMB 556 million in the same period last year; adjusted earnings per share were RMB 1.08, with market estimates at RMB 0.97; the annual net loss was RMB 390 million, a year-on-year reduction of 99%.
• Daily active users: Q4 daily active users were 103 million, compared to 100.1 million in the same period last year, with an average daily usage time of 99 minutes, a year-on-year increase of 4%.

It is worth mentioning that Bilibili achieved quarterly profitability for the first time in Q4, with an adjusted net profit of RMB 450 million (Non-GAAP) and a net profit of RMB 89 million under U.S. GAAP, with the annual net loss also significantly narrowing.

Bilibili Chairman and CEO Chen Rui stated:

We achieved profitability under generally accepted accounting principles for the first quarter—this milestone reflects the value of our community and our efforts to improve commercialization efficiency. Over the past year, we have advanced our commercialization strategy and improved our products to meet the changing content and consumption needs of our users. In 2024, our total net revenue is expected to grow by 19% year-on-year to RMB 26.832 billion.

Among them, the advertising and mobile gaming businesses performed strongly, with revenues increasing by 28% and 40% year-on-year, respectively. The emergence of new open-source AI models has also encouraged us, making AI solutions easier to use and more cost-effective.

After the earnings report was released, Bilibili's U.S. stock quickly surged, currently up nearly 7%.

Game and Advertising Businesses Perform Brightly

High-margin advertising and mobile gaming businesses experienced strong growth, driving Q4 gross margin up by 10 percentage points to 36.1%. Specifically:

Gaming business: Q4 revenue of 1.798 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 79%, mainly due to the continued dominance of "Three Kingdoms: Strategy of the World" S5 season on the iOS bestseller list, as well as the impressive global revenue of the licensed game "Jujutsu Kaisen" (nearly 130 million yuan in overseas revenue within 30 days of launch).

Advertising business: Revenue of 2.389 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 24%, driven by upgrades in commercialization infrastructure (such as the internal testing of "B Mini Program" and the application of AIGC technology) that enhance efficiency.

Value-added services (VAS): Revenue is expected to be 3.083 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 5%, driven by the summer peak season and live streaming business growth.

IP derivatives and others: Revenue from IP derivatives and others is 465 million yuan, a decrease of 16% compared to the same period in 2023