Bitauto (BITA) Tops Q2 EPS by 31c, Revenues Miss

Bitauto (NYSE: BITA) reported Q2 EPS of ($0.66), $0.31 better than the analyst estimate of ($0.97). Revenue for the quarter came in at $276.9 million versus the consensus estimate of $305.08 million.

Bitauto Second Quarter 2020 Highlights

• Basic and diluted net loss per ADS, each representing one ordinary share, in the second quarter of 2020 amounted to RMB5.15 (US$0.73) and RMB5.15 (US$0.73), respectively.
• Non-GAAP basic and diluted net loss per ADS in the second quarter of 2020 amounted to RMB4.65 (US$0.66) and RMB4.65 (US$0.66), respectively.
• Revenue in the second quarter of 2020 was RMB1.96 billion (US$276.9 million), compared to RMB2.79 billion (US$395.1 million) in the corresponding period in 2019.
• Gross profit in the second quarter of 2020 was RMB1.30 billion (US$184.4 million), compared to RMB1.67 billion (US$236.9 million) in the corresponding period in 2019.
• Net loss in the second quarter of 2020 was RMB536.4 million (US$75.9 million), compared to net loss of RMB136.2 million (US$19.3 million) in the corresponding period in 2019. Non-GAAP net loss in the second quarter of 2020 was RMB447.3 million (US$63.3 million), compared to Non-GAAP net income of RMB216.0 million (US$30.6 million) in the corresponding period in 2019.
• Net loss attributable to Bitauto in the second quarter of 2020 was RMB368.8 million (US$52.2 million), compared to net loss attributable to Bitauto of RMB145.5 million (US$20.6 million) in the corresponding period in 2019.Non-GAAP net loss attributable to Bitauto in the second quarter of 2020 was RMB333.6 million (US$47.2 million), compared to Non-GAAP net income attributable to Bitauto of RMB155.3 million (US$22.0 million) in the corresponding period in 2019.

Mr. Andy Zhang, chief executive officer of Bitauto, said, "Despite China's gradual economic recovery following the COVID-19 outbreak, the domestic automobile industry remained challenged during the second quarter of 2020 with sluggish retail passenger vehicle sales and rising dealer inventory levels. The macro situation presents both challenges and opportunities for our business."

"While weak vehicle sales and increasingly fierce competition in China's online automobile advertising sector put pressure on our advertising business, Bitauto's paying subscriber base increased slightly during the quarter, helping to drive mild revenue growth in our subscription business. In our transaction services business, due to its conservative risk control approach, Yixin recorded about 69,000 total transactions in the second quarter, representing a year-over-year decrease of approximately 49.9%."

"In the months ahead, in response to the uncertainties in China's overall economic environment and particularly the automobile sector, we will stay focused on our core strategic initiatives. First, our continued efforts to upgrade our content and product offerings will provide better value to automobile customers, car owners, automakers and dealer customers. Second, we will further raise Bitauto's brand recognition through our on-going strategic brand building campaign, which we expect will help further expand our user base and enhance user engagement. Third, Yixin will continue to optimize its conservative risk assessment methodology and strengthen its dealer and financial institution partnerships to explore opportunities as China's automobile market recovers. We believe our efforts will help strengthen Bitauto's position as the leading provider of Internet content and marketing services and transaction services for China's automobile industry."

Mr. Ming Xu, chief financial officer of Bitauto, said, "The weakness in China's automobile sector in the second quarter of 2020 continued to impact our top line results. We also continued to experience margin pressure this quarter due to our branding and marketing initiatives as well as our on-going investments in user acquisition. In the long run, we expect these efforts will form a solid foundation to attract users and enhance our value proposition for our business partners."

For earnings history and earnings-related data on Bitauto (BITA) click here.

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