The latest: Video-sharing platform Bilibili Inc. (BILI.US; 9626.HK) announced on Thursday its revenue increased 6% to 6.14 billion yuan ($890 million) in last year’s fourth quarter, while its net loss narrowed by 19% to 1.49 billion yuan. For the full year, its revenue rose 13% to 21.9 billion yuan, and its net loss widened 10% to 7.5 billion yuan.
Looking up: The company’s operating performance continued to improve in the fourth quarter on a sequential basis, rising from revenue of 5.8 billion yuan and a net loss of 1.7 billion yuan in the third quarter, showing Bilibili was relatively unaffected China’s Covid outbreaks at the end of the year.
Take Note: The company’s mobile game and advertising revenue declined 12% and 6.3% year-over-year, respectively, in the quarter. But those losses were offset by a 24% jump in value-added services during the period, thanks to an increase in its paying subscriber base.
Digging Deeper: Bilibili is a popular livestreaming platform, but has been unable to shake off its chronic losses since its 2018 IPO. Its net loss increased 10% to 7.5 billion yuan last year despite management’s stated intention to strictly control costs, and it has logged accumulated losses of 17.3 billion yuan over the past three years. In January this year, the company raised $409 million by issuing new American depositary shares (ADSs), and used the funds to buy back an outstanding $269 million in convertible senior notes that will come due at the end of 2026, in a “debt-for-shares swap” to reduce debt and improve its financial position.
Market Reaction: Bilibibi’s Hong Kong shares surged on Friday, closing up 9.6% at HK$167.80 by the midday break. The stock now trades in the middle of its 52-week range.
Translation by Jony Ho
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