To The Moon

March 17 (Reuters) - Chinese e-commerce firm Pinduoduo Inc reported a 146% surge in quarterly revenue on Wednesday, thanks to online shoppers buying everything from groceries to luxury products from the comfort of their homes.

Pinduoduo allows buyers to avail greater discounts when shopping with more number of people - something that seems to have attracted consumers who have less spendable income due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Shanghai-based company's annual active users jumped during the pandemic-hit year, helping Pinduoduo overtake larger rival Alibaba Group to become China's largest e-commerce platform by consumers.

Pinduoduo reported 788.4 million active buyers in 2020, while Alibaba had recorded 779 million active buyers during the same period.

Total revenues rose to 26.55 billion yuan ($4.08 billion) in the fourth quarter ended Dec. 31, topping analysts' estimates of 19.22 billion yuan, according to IBES data from Refinitiv.

Net loss narrowed to 1.38 billion yuan from 1.75 billion yuan a year earlier. ($1 = 6.5027 Chinese yuan renminbi)

Fourth Quarter 2020 Highlights

• GMV1 in the twelve-month period endedDecember 31, 2020wasRMB1,667.6 billion(US$2255.6 billion), an increase of 66% fromRMB1,006.6 billionin the twelve-month period endedDecember 31, 2019.
• Total revenues in the quarter wereRMB26,547.7 million(US$4,068.6 million), an increase of 146% fromRMB10,792.7 millionin the same quarter of 2019.
• Average monthly active users3 in the quarter were 719.9 million, an increase of 50% from 481.5 million in the same quarter of 2019.
• Active buyers4 in the twelve-month period endedDecember 31, 2020were 788.4 million, an increase of 35% from 585.2 million in the twelve-month period endedDecember 31, 2019.
• Annual spending per active buyer5 in the twelve-month period endedDecember 31, 2020wasRMB 2,115.2(US$324.2), an increase of 23% fromRMB 1,720.1in the twelve-month period endedDecember 31, 2019.

“We saw six years ago that mobile is the only way to go. Therefore, we are the only major consumer internet company in the world that is mobile only. The mobile internet fundamentally transforms the way humans interact with each other,” said Mr.Lei Chen, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer ofPinduoduo.

“This revolution is tearing down the walls between the physical and digital worlds. Being a mobile-only product in this new age, we are well-placed to benefit from the opportunities thrown up by each behavioral change.”

“One such change sweeping the world is agriculture and grocery.Pinduoduostarted with agricultural products, with the vision of offering consumers the ‘Costco + Disney’ experience of more savings and more fun. We are now the largest agriculture platform inChinaand we hope thatPinduoduocan one day become the largest grocer in the world,”Mr. Chencontinued.

“Agriculture is a strategic priority for us, and we will continue to invest in technology and operations across the agricultural value chain to optimize food production, distribution and consumption,” added Mr.David Liu, Vice President of Strategy. “Reducing inefficiencies in the supply chain will lower structural costs and make groceries more affordable for everyone.”

“We continued to deliver strong results in the fourth quarter and generate positive cash flow from operations,” said Mr.Tony Ma, Vice President of Finance. “Our total revenues for fiscal year 2020 increased 97% from the prior year, and excluding contribution from merchandise sales, our total revenues grew 78%.”

Fourth Quarter 2020 Unaudited Financial Results

Total revenueswereRMB26,547.7 million(US$4,068.6 million), an increase of 146% fromRMB10,792.7 millionin the same quarter of 2019. The increase was primarily due to an increase in revenues from online marketing services and contribution from merchandise sales.

• Revenues from online marketing services and others were RMB18,922.0 million(US$2,899.9 million), an increase of 95% fromRMB9,686.7 millionin the same quarter of 2019.
• Revenues from transaction serviceswereRMB2,267.9 million(US$347.6 million), an increase of 105% fromRMB1,106.0 millionin the same quarter of 2019.
• Revenues from merchandise saleswereRMB5,357.8 million(US$821.1 million), an increase ofRMB5,357.8 millionfrom nil in the same quarter of 2019.

Total costs of revenueswereRMB11,526.1 million(US$1,766.5 million), an increase of 466% fromRMB2,037.4 millionin the same quarter of 2019. The increase was mainly due to costs and expenses attributable to merchandise sales, higher cost of payment processing fees, cloud services fees, merchant support services, and delivery and storage fees.

Total operating expenseswereRMB17,069.4 million(US$2,616.0 million), compared withRMB10,890.6 millionin the same quarter of 2019.

• Sales and marketing expenseswereRMB14,712.5 million(US$2,254.8 million), an increase of 59% fromRMB9,272.5 millionin the same quarter of 2019, mainly due to an increase in advertising expenses and promotion and coupon expenses.
• General and administrative expenseswereRMB405.6 million(US$62.2 million), an increase of 17% fromRMB345.7 millionin the same quarter of 2019, primarily due to an increase in professional and outsourcing services.
• Research and development expenseswereRMB1,951.3 million(US$299.0 million), an increase of 53% fromRMB1,272.4 millionin the same quarter of 2019. The increase was primarily due to an increase in headcount and the recruitment of more experienced R&D personnel and an increase in R&D-related cloud services expenses.

Operating losswasRMB2,047.8 million(US$313.8 million), compared with operating loss ofRMB2,135.3 millionin the same quarter of 2019.Non-GAAP operating loss6wasRMB1,114.5 million(US$170.8 million), compared with operating loss ofRMB1,336.6 millionin the same quarter of 2019.

Net loss attributable to ordinary shareholderswasRMB1,376.4 million(US$210.9 million), compared withRMB1,751.6 millionin the same quarter of 2019.Non-GAAP net loss attributable to ordinary shareholderswasRMB184.5 million(US$28.3 million), compared withRMB815.0 millionin the same quarter of 2019.

Basic and diluted net loss per ADSwereRMB1.13(US$0.17), compared withRMB1.52in the same quarter of 2019.Non-GAAP basic and diluted net loss per ADSwereRMB0.15(US$0.02), compared withRMB0.72in the same quarter of 2019.

Net cash flow from operating activitieswasRMB14,946.6 million(US$2,290.7 million), compared withRMB9,598.0 millionin the same quarter of 2019, primarily due to an increase in online marketing services revenues.

Cash, cash equivalents and short-term investmentswereRMB87.0 billion(US$13.3 billion) as ofDecember 31, 2020, compared withRMB41.1 billionas ofDecember 31, 2019.

Fiscal Year 2020 Financial Results

Total revenueswereRMB59,491.9 million(US$9,117.5 million), representing an increase of 97% fromRMB30,141.9 millionin 2019. The increase was primarily due to an increase in revenues from online marketing services and contribution from merchandise sales.

• Revenues from online marketing services and otherswereRMB47,953.8 million(US$7,349.2 million), representing an increase of 79% fromRMB26,813.6 millionin 2019.
• Revenues from transaction serviceswereRMB5,787.4 million(US$887.0 million), representing an increase of 74% fromRMB3,328.2 millionin 2019.
• Revenues from merchandise saleswereRMB5,750.7 million(US$881.3 million), an increase ofRMB5,750.7 millionfrom nil in 2019.

Total costs of revenueswereRMB19,278.6 million(US$2,954.6 million), representing an increase of 204% fromRMB6,338.8 millionin 2019. The increase was mainly due to costs and expenses attributable to merchandise sales, higher cost of payment processing fees, cloud services fees, merchant support services, and delivery and storage fees.

Total operating expenseswereRMB49,593.5 million(US$7,600.5 million), compared withRMB32,341.3 millionin 2019.

• Sales and marketing expenseswereRMB41,194.6 million(US$6,313.3 million), an increase of 52% fromRMB27,174.2 millionin 2019, mainly due to an increase in advertising expenses and promotion and coupon expenses.
• General and administrative expenseswereRMB1,507.3 million(US$231.0 million), an increase of 16% fromRMB1,296.7 millionin 2019, primarily due to an increase in headcount.
• Research and development expenseswereRMB6,891.7 million(US$1,056.2 million), an increase of 78% fromRMB3,870.4 millionin 2019. The increase was primarily due to an increase in headcount and the recruitment of more experienced R&D personnel and an increase in R&D-related cloud services expenses.

Operating losswasRMB9,380.3 million(US$1,437.6 million), compared with operating loss ofRMB8,538.2 millionin 2019.Non-GAAP operating losswasRMB5,767.3 million(US$883.9 million), compared withRMB5,980.5 millionin 2019.

Net loss attributable to ordinary shareholderswasRMB7,179.7 million(US$1,100.3 million), compared withRMB6,967.6 millionin 2019.Non-GAAP net loss attributable to ordinary shareholderswasRMB2,965.0 million(US$454.4 million), compared withRMB4,265.8 millionin 2019.

Basic and diluted net loss per ADSwereRMB6.02(US$0.92), compared withRMB6.04in 2019. Non-GAAP basic and diluted net loss per ADS wereRMB2.49(US$0.38), compared withRMB3.68in 2019.

Net cash provided by operating activitieswasRMB28,196.6 million(US$4,321.3 million), compared withRMB14,821.0 millionin 2019, primarily due to an increase in online marketing services revenues.

Recent Development

As of February 28, 2021,US$711.9 millionof the 0% convertible bond due in 2024 have been converted into newly issued ADSs.