UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

 

 

 

FORM 6-K

 

 

 

REPORT OF FOREIGN PRIVATE ISSUER

PURSUANT TO RULE 13a-16 OR 15d-16

OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

 

For the month of November 2021

 

Commission File Number: 001-36397

 

 

 

Weibo Corporation

(Registrant’s Name)

 

 

 

8/F, QIHAO Plaza, No. 8 Xinyuan S. Road

Chaoyang District, Beijing 100027

People’s Republic of China

(Address of Principal Executive Offices)

 

 

 

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant files or will file annual reports under cover Form 20-F or Form 40-F.

 

Form 20-F x      Form 40-F ¨

 

Indicate by check mark if the registrant is submitting the Form 6-K in paper as permitted by Regulation S-T Rule 101(b)(1): ¨

 

Indicate by check mark if the registrant is submitting the Form 6-K in paper as permitted by Regulation S-T Rule 101(b)(7): ¨

 

 

 

 

 

 

EXHIBIT INDEX

 

Exhibit 99.1        Press Release regarding Financial Results for the Third Quarter Ended September 30, 2021 issued by Weibo Corporation on November 11, 2021

 

2

 

 

SIGNATURES

 

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized.

 

  WEIBO CORPORATION
   
   
   
Date: November 12, 2021 By:  /s/ Fei Cao
    Fei Cao
    Chief Financial Officer

 

3

 

 

Exhibit 99.1

 

Weibo Reports Third Quarter 2021 Unaudited Financial Results

 

 

BEIJING, China – November 11, 2021 – Weibo Corporation (“Weibo” or the “Company”) (NASDAQ: WB), a leading social media in China, today announced its unaudited financial results for the third quarter ended September 30, 2021.

 

“We delivered another solid quarter, with sustained user growth and top line expansion,” said Gaofei Wang, CEO of Weibo. “In September, both our MAUs and DAUs continued to grow from prior quarter, driven by a greater focus on Weibo's core positioning in social media, strong execution ability, effective channel investment strategies and the Olympic Game effect. We are committed to responding positively to the new regulatory requirements, and are confident that the new regulatory environment will benefit the internet sector, and empower Weibo’s user growth and monetization in the long run.” Mr. Wang concluded.

 

Third Quarter 2021 Highlights

 

·Net revenues were $607.4 million, an increase of 30% year-over-year or an increase of 23% year-over-year on a constant currency basis [1].

 

·Advertising and marketing revenues were $537.6 million, an increase of 29% year-over-year.

 

·Value-added service (“VAS”) revenues were $69.8 million, an increase of 42% year-over-year.

 

·Income from operations was $213.0 million, an increase of 32% year-over-year, representing an operating margin of 35%.

 

·Net income attributable to Weibo was $181.7 million and diluted net income per share was $0.78.

 

·Non-GAAP income from operations was $248.7 million, an increase of 39% year-over-year, representing a non-GAAP operating margin of 41%.

 

·Non-GAAP net income attributable to Weibo was $209.6 million and non-GAAP diluted net income per share was $0.90.

 

·Monthly active users ("MAUs") were 573 million in September 2021, a net addition of 62 million users on a year-over-year basis. Mobile MAUs represented 94% of MAUs.

 

·Average daily active users ("DAUs") were 248 million in September 2021, a net addition of 23 million users on a year-over-year basis.

 

[1] On a constant currency (non-GAAP) basis, we assume that the exchange rate in the third quarter of 2021 had been the same as it was in the third quarter of 2020, or RMB 6.92=US$1.00.

 

 

 

 

Third Quarter 2021 Financial Results

 

For the third quarter of 2021, Weibo’s total net revenues were $607.4 million, an increase of 30% compared to $465.7 million for the same period last year.

 

Advertising and marketing revenues for the third quarter of 2021 were $537.6 million, an increase of 29% compared to $416.7 million for the same period last year. Advertising and marketing revenues excluding ad revenues from Alibaba were $516.8 million, an increase of 33% compared to $387.5 million for the same period last year, primarily attributable to solid advertising demand from key industries as well as strong sales execution.

 

VAS revenues for the third quarter of 2021 were $69.8 million, an increase of 42% year-over-year compared to $49.1 million for the same period last year, mainly attributable to the incremental revenues derived from the interactive entertainment company acquired in November 2020, while partially offset by decrease of revenue from live streaming business.

 

Costs and expenses for the third quarter of 2021 totaled $394.4 million, an increase of 29% compared to $304.8 million for the same period last year. The increase was primarily due to higher personnel-related cost and marketing expense.

 

Income from operations for the third quarter of 2021 was $213.0 million, an increase of 32% compared to $161.0 million for the same period last year. Operating margin was 35%, same as last year. Non-GAAP income from operations was $248.7 million, an increase of 39% compared to $179.4 million for the same period last year. Non-GAAP operating margin was 41%, compared to 39% last year.

 

Non-operating income for the third quarter of 2021 was $0.2 million, compared to a non-operating loss of $97.5 million for the same period last year. Non-operating income for the third quarter of 2021 mainly included (i) a $36.4 million net gain on fair value change of investments, which is excluded under non-GAAP measures; (ii) a $36.0 million impairment charge on equity investments, which is excluded under non-GAAP measures; and (iii) a $0.5 million net interest and other expense.

 

Income tax expenses for the third quarter of 2021 were $31.4 million, compared to $30.0 million for the same period last year.

 

 

 

 

Net income attributable to Weibo for the third quarter of 2021 was $181.7 million, compared to $33.8 million for the same period last year. Diluted net income per share attributable to Weibo for the third quarter of 2021 was $0.78, compared to $0.15 for the same period last year. Non-GAAP net income attributable to Weibo for the third quarter of 2021 was $209.6 million, compared to $152.9 million for the same period last year. Non-GAAP diluted net income per share attributable to Weibo for the third quarter of 2021 was $0.90, compared to $0.66 for the same period last year.

 

As of September 30, 2021, Weibo’s cash, cash equivalents and short-term investments totaled $2.71 billion. For the third quarter of 2021, cash provided by operating activities was $226.0 million, capital expenditures totaled $8.3 million, and depreciation and amortization expenses amounted to $14.1 million.

 

Business Outlook

 

For the fourth quarter of 2021, Weibo estimates its net revenues to increase by 15% to 20% year-over-year on a constant currency basis. This forecast reflects Weibo’s current and preliminary view, which is subject to change.

 

Conference Call

 

Weibo's management team will host a conference call from 6:00 AM to 7:00 AM Eastern Time on November 11, 2021 (or 7:00 PM – 8:00 PM Beijing Time on November 11, 2021) to present an overview of the Company's financial performance and business operations.

 

Please register in advance of the conference call using the link provided below. Upon registering, you will be provided with dial-in numbers, passcode and unique registrant ID by email. To join the conference, please use the conference access information provided in the email received at the point of registering.

 

PRE-REGISTER LINK: http://apac.directeventreg.com/registration/event/7755478

 

Additionally, a live webcast of the call will be available through the Company's corporate website at http://ir.weibo.com.

 

A telephone replay will be available from 22:00 China Standard Time on November 11, 2021 to 20:59 China Standard Time on November 19, 2021. To access the recording, please use the following dial-in information listed below:

 

United States: +1 855 452 5696
Hong Kong: 800 963 117
Mainland China: 400 602 2065
International: +61 2 8199 0299
Replay PIN: 7755478

 

 

 

 

Non-GAAP Financial Measures

 

This release contains the following non-GAAP financial measures: non-GAAP income from operations, non-GAAP net income attributable to Weibo’s shareholders, non-GAAP diluted net income per share attributable to Weibo’s shareholders and adjusted EBITDA. These non-GAAP financial measures should be considered in addition to, not as a substitute for, measures of the Company’s financial performance prepared in accordance with U.S. GAAP.

 

The Company’s non-GAAP financial measures exclude stock-based compensation, amortization of intangible assets resulting from business acquisitions, non-cash compensation cost to non-controlling interest shareholders, net results of impairment on, gain/loss on sale of and fair value change of investments, non-GAAP to GAAP reconciling items on the share of equity method investments, non-GAAP to GAAP reconciling items for the income/loss attributable to non-controlling interests, provision for income tax primarily related to the amortization of intangible assets resulting from business acquisitions and fair value change of investments, and amortization of convertible debt and unsecured senior notes issuance cost. Adjusted EBITDA excludes interest income, net, income tax expenses (benefit), and depreciation expenses.

 

The Company’s management uses these non-GAAP financial measures in their financial and operating decision-making, because management believes these measures reflect the Company’s ongoing operating performance in a manner that allows more meaningful period-to-period comparisons. The Company believes that these non-GAAP financial measures provide useful information to investors and others in the following ways: (i) in comparing the Company’s current financial results with the Company’s past financial results in a consistent manner, and (ii) in understanding and evaluating the Company’s current operating performance and future prospects in the same manner as management does, if they so choose. The Company also believes that the non-GAAP financial measures provide useful information to both management and investors by excluding certain expenses, gains (losses) and other items (i) that are not expected to result in future cash payments or (ii) that are non-recurring in nature or may not be indicative of the Company’s core operating results and business outlook.

 

Use of non-GAAP financial measures has limitations. The Company’s non-GAAP financial measures do not include all income and expense items that affect the Company’s operations. They may not be comparable to non-GAAP financial measures used by other companies. Accordingly, care should be exercised in understanding how the Company defines its non-GAAP financial measures. Reconciliations of the Company’s non-GAAP financial measures to the nearest comparable GAAP measures are set forth in the section below titled “Unaudited Reconciliation of Non-GAAP to GAAP Results.”

 

 

 

 

About Weibo

 

Weibo is a leading social media for people to create, share and discover content online. Weibo combines the means of public self-expression in real time with a powerful platform for social interaction, content aggregation and content distribution. Any user can create and post a feed and attach multi-media and long-form content. User relationships on Weibo may be asymmetric; any user can follow any other user and add comments to a feed while reposting. This simple, asymmetric and distributed nature of Weibo allows an original feed to become a live viral conversation stream.

 

Weibo enables its advertising and marketing customers to promote their brands, products and services to users. Weibo offers a wide range of advertising and marketing solutions to companies of all sizes. The Company generates a substantial majority of its revenues from the sale of advertising and marketing services, including the sale of social display advertisement and promoted marketing offerings. Designed with a “mobile first” philosophy, Weibo displays content in a simple information feed format and offers native advertisement that conform to the information feed on our platform. To support the mobile format, we have developed and continuously refining our social interest graph recommendation engine, which enables our customers to perform people marketing and target audiences based on user demographics, social relationships, interests and behaviors, to achieve greater relevance, engagement and marketing effectiveness.

 

 

 

 

Safe Harbor Statement

 

This press release contains forward-looking statements that relate to, among other things, Weibo’s expected financial performance and strategic and operational plans (as described, without limitation, in the “Business Outlook” section and in quotations from management in this press release. Weibo may also make forward-looking statements in the Company’s periodic reports to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”), in press releases and other written materials and in oral statements made by its officers, directors or employees to third parties. Statements that are not historical facts, including statements about the Company’s beliefs and expectations, are forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements can be identified by terminology, such as “will,” “expects,” “anticipates,” “future,” “intends,” “plans,” “believes,” “confidence,” “estimates” and similar statements. Forward-looking statements involve inherent risks and uncertainties. A number of important factors could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in any forward-looking statement. Potential risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, Weibo’s limited operating history in certain new businesses; failure to grow active user base and the level of user engagement; the uncertain regulatory landscape in China; fluctuations in the Company’s quarterly operating results; the Company’s reliance on advertising and marketing sales for a majority of its revenues; failure to successfully develop, introduce, drive adoption of or monetize new features and products; failure to compete effectively for advertising and marketing spending; failure to successfully integrate acquired businesses; risks associated with the Company’s investments, including equity pick-up and impairment; failure to compete successfully against new entrants and established industry competitors; changes in the macro-economic environment, including the depreciation of the Renminbi; and adverse changes in economic and political policies of the PRC government and its impact on the Chinese economy. Further information regarding these and other risks is included in Weibo’s annual report on Form 20-Fs and other filings with the SEC. All information provided in this press release is current as of the date hereof, and Weibo assumes no obligation to update such information, except as required under applicable law.

 

Contact: 

Investor Relations 

Weibo Corporation 

Phone: +86 10 5898-3336 

Email: ir@staff.weibo.com

 

 

 

 

WEIBO CORPORATION
UNAUDITED CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS
(In thousands of U.S. dollars, except per share data)

 

   Three months ended   Nine months ended 
   September 30,   June 30,   September 30, 
   2021   2020   2021   2021   2020 
Net revenues:                         
Advertising and marketing  $537,620   $416,672   $502,338   $1,429,969   $1,032,678 
Value-added service   69,814    49,067    72,128    210,827    143,843 
Net revenues   607,434    465,739    574,466    1,640,796    1,176,521 
                          
Costs and expenses:                         
Cost of revenues (1)   102,978    77,198    92,548    275,296    214,892 
Sales and marketing (1)   140,839    105,263    154,393    439,207    316,483 
Product development (1)   118,821    83,511    101,419    316,806    233,881 
General and administrative (1)   31,747    38,813    32,869    94,597    86,111 
Total costs and expenses   394,385    304,785    381,229    1,125,906    851,367 
Income from operations   213,049    160,954    193,237    514,890    325,154 
                          
Non-operating income (loss):                         

Impairment on, gain/loss on sale of and fair value change of investments, net

   646    (103,787)   (76,814)   (134,368)   10,654 
Interest and other income (expense) , net   (489)   6,311    11,474    24,489    34,301 
    157    (97,476)   (65,340)   (109,879)   44,955 
                          
Income before income tax expenses   213,206    63,478    127,897    405,011    370,109 
Provision of income taxes   (31,405)   (30,003)   (46,910)   (93,260)   (86,630)
                          
Net income   181,801    33,475    80,987    311,751    283,479 
Less: Net income (loss) attributable to non-controlling interests   63    (323)   (41)   (835)   (843)
Net income attributable to Weibo's shareholders  $181,738   $33,798   $81,028   $312,586   $284,322 
                          
                          
Basic net income per share attributable to Weibo's shareholders  $0.79   $0.15   $0.36   $1.37   $1.25 
Diluted net income per share attributable to Weibo's shareholders  $0.78   $0.15   $0.35   $1.36   $1.25 
                          
Shares used in computing basic net income
per share attributable to Weibo's shareholders
   228,675    227,110    228,099    228,185    226,728 
Shares used in computing diluted net income
per share attributable to Weibo's shareholders
   237,183    227,793    229,555    229,765    227,352 
                          
(1) Stock-based compensation in each category:                         
Cost of revenues  $2,450   $1,407   $1,827   $5,690   $3,909 
Sales and marketing   4,700    2,623    3,298    10,249    6,886 
Product development   11,047    8,438    10,137    29,260    22,890 
General and administrative   6,840    5,129    5,206    16,059    14,100 

 

 

 

 

WEIBO CORPORATION
UNAUDITED CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS
(In thousands of U.S. dollars)

 

   September 30,   December 31, 
   2021   2020 
Assets  
Current assets:          
Cash and cash equivalents  $1,828,691   $1,814,844 
Short-term investments   878,487    1,682,048 
Accounts receivable, net   683,710    492,010 
Prepaid expenses and other current assets   944,044    296,757 
Amount due from SINA(1)   515,534    548,900 
Current assets subtotal   4,850,466    4,834,559 
           
Property and equipment, net   64,396    60,632 
Goodwill and intangible assets, net   299,332    208,688 
Long-term investments   1,195,549    1,179,466 
Other non-current assets   588,293    51,772 
Total assets  $6,998,036   $6,335,117 
           
Liabilities, Redeemable Non-controlling Interests and Shareholders’ Equity 
Liabilities:          
Current liabilities:          
Accounts payable  $177,647   $149,509 
Accrued expenses and other current liabilities   736,924    562,333 
Deferred revenues   132,468    143,684 
Income tax payable   115,241    102,844 
Current liabilities subtotal   1,162,280    958,370 
           
Long-term liabilities:          
Convertible debt   895,505    892,399 
Unsecured senior notes   1,537,840    1,536,112 
Other long-term liabilities   71,998    61,906 
Total liabilities   3,667,623    3,448,787 
           
Redeemable non-controlling interests   74,170    57,714 
           
Shareholders’ equity :          
Weibo shareholders’ equity   3,226,943    2,812,425 
Non-controlling interests   29,300    16,191 
Total shareholders’ equity   3,256,243    2,828,616 
           
Total liabilities, redeemable non-controlling interests and
shareholders’ equity
  $6,998,036   $6,335,117 

 

(1) Included short-term loans to and interest receivable from SINA of $487.9 million as of  September 30, 2021 and $547.9 million as of December 31, 2020.  

 

 

 

 

 

WEIBO CORPORATION
UNAUDITED RECONCILIATION OF NON-GAAP TO GAAP RESULTS
(In thousands of U.S. dollars, except per share data)

 

    Three months ended     Nine months ended  
    September 30,     June 30,     September 30,  
    2021     2020     2021     2021     2020  
Income from operations   $ 213,049     $ 160,954     $ 193,237     $ 514,890     $ 325,154  
Add:Stock-based compensation     25,037       17,597       20,468       61,258       47,785  
Amortization of intangible assets resulting from business acquisitions     5,478       836       4,876       14,873       2,480  
Non-cash compensation cost to non-controlling interest shareholders     5,140       -       4,649       18,420       -  
Non-GAAP income from operations   $ 248,704     $ 179,387     $ 223,230     $ 609,441     $ 375,419  
                                         
Net income attributable to Weibo's shareholders   $ 181,738     $ 33,798     $ 81,028     $ 312,586     $ 284,322  
Add:Stock-based compensation     25,037       17,597       20,468       61,258       47,785  
Amortization of intangible assets resulting from business acquisitions     5,478       836       4,876       14,873       2,480  
Non-cash compensation cost to non-controlling interest shareholders     5,140       -       4,649       18,420       -  
Net results of impairment on, gain/loss on sale of and fair value change of investments     (646 )     103,787       76,814       134,368       (10,654 )
Non-GAAP to GAAP reconciling items on the share of equity method investments     (1,715 )     (3,658 )     (8,091 )     (10,881 )     (5,554 )
Non-GAAP to GAAP reconciling items for the income/loss attributable to non-controlling interests     (233 )     (21 )     (198 )     (72 )     94  
Tax effects on non-GAAP adjustments(1)     (6,856 )     (1,062 )     1,648       (12,356 )     11,992  
Amortization of convertible debt and unsecured senior notes issuance cost     1,611       1,595       1,611       4,834       4,333  
Non-GAAP net income attributable to Weibo's shareholders   $ 209,554     $ 152,872     $ 182,805     $ 523,030     $ 334,798  
                                         
Non-GAAP diluted net income per share attributable to Weibo's shareholders   $ 0.90 *   $ 0.66 *   $ 0.79 *   $ 2.25 *   $ 1.47 * 
                                         
Shares used in computing GAAP diluted net income per share attributable to Weibo's shareholders     237,183       227,793       229,555       229,765       227,352  
Add:The number of shares for dilution resulted from convertible debt(2)     -       6,753       6,753       6,753       6,753  
Shares used in computing non-GAAP diluted net income per share attributable to Weibo's shareholders     237,183       234,546       236,308       236,518       234,105  
                                         
Adjusted EBITDA:                                        
Net income attributable to Weibo's shareholders   $ 181,738     $ 33,798     $ 81,028     $ 312,586     $ 284,322  
Non-GAAP adjustments     27,816       119,074       101,777       210,444       50,476  
Non-GAAP net income attributable to Weibo's shareholders     209,554       152,872       182,805       523,030       334,798  
Interest income,net     (701 )     (4,340 )     (3,848 )     (8,488 )     (30,324 )
Income tax expenses     38,261       31,065       45,262       105,616       74,638  
Depreciation expenses     8,141       6,894       8,204       24,254       18,942  
Adjusted EBITDA   $ 255,255     $ 186,491     $ 232,423     $ 644,412     $ 398,054  

 

(1) To exclude the provision for income tax primarily related to amortization of intangible assets resulting from business acquisitions and fair value change of investments. The Company considered the tax implication arising from the reconciliation items and part of these items recorded in entities in tax free jurisdictions were without relevant tax implications. For impairment on investments, valuation allowances were made for those differences as the Company does not expect they can be realized in the foreseeable future.

(2) To adjust the number of shares for dilution resulted from convertible debt which were anti-dilutive under GAAP measures.

 

*  Net income attributable to Weibo's shareholders is adjusted for interest expense of convertible debt for calculating diluted EPS.

 

 

 

 

WEIBO CORPORATION
UNAUDITED ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
(In thousands of U.S. dollars)

 

   Three months ended   Nine months ended 
   September 30,   June 30,   September 30, 
   2021   2020   2021   2021   2020 
Net revenues                         
Advertising and marketing                         
Non-Ali advertisers  $516,818   $387,517   $462,372   $1,335,901   $940,210 
Alibaba - as an advertiser   20,802    29,155    39,966    94,068    92,468 
Subtotal   537,620    416,672    502,338    1,429,969    1,032,678 
                          
Value-added service   69,814    49,067    72,128    210,827    143,843 
   $607,434   $465,739   $574,466   $1,640,796   $1,176,521