China Online Education Group , a leading online education platform in China, with core expertise in English education, announced its unaudited financial results for the first quarter ended March 31, 2021.
First Quarter 2021 Financial and Operating Highlights
Key Financial and Operating Data |
For the three months ended |
||||
Mar. 31, |
Mar. 31, |
Y-o-Y |
|||
2020 |
2021 |
Change |
|||
Net Revenues (in RMB millions) |
487.1 |
600.4 |
23.3% |
||
K-12 one-on-one mass market offering |
404.2 |
549.6 |
36.0% |
||
K-12 small class offering |
22.7 |
18.2 |
(19.8%) |
||
Others |
60.2 |
32.6 |
(45.8%) |
||
Gross billings (in RMB millions) |
596.9 |
685.0 |
14.8% |
||
K-12 one-on-one mass market offering |
563.5 |
660.1 |
17.1% |
||
K-12 small class offering |
11.5 |
5.3 |
(53.9%) |
||
Others |
21.9 |
19.6 |
(10.5%) |
||
Active students[3] (in thousands) |
286.6 |
392.7 |
37.0% |
||
[1] For more information on non-GAAP financial measures, please see the section of “Use of Non-GAAP Financial Measures” and the table captioned “Reconciliation of Non-GAAP Measures to the Most Comparable GAAP Measures” set forth in this press release. |
[2] Gross billings for a specific period, which is one of the Company’s key operating data, is defined as the total amount of cash received for the sale of course packages and services in such period, net of the total amount of refunds in such period. |
[3] An “active student” for a specified period refers to a student who booked at least one paid lesson, excluding those students who only attended paid live broadcasting lessons or trial lessons. |
“We are delighted to report another solid quarter as first quarter net revenue reached RMB600.4 million, a 23.3% year-over-year increase that once again beat the top end of our guidance,” said Mr. Jack Jiajia Huang, Founder, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of 51Talk. “Remarkably, our net revenues from K12 one-on-one mass market offering grew 36.0% compared to first quarter last year. This performance was mainly driven by an increase in the number of active students, which rose 37.0% year-over-year. These results illustrate the massive opportunity that exists in K12 one-on-one mass market with the growing acceptance of online education.
“In addition to organic growth through our existing strategies, we have also been pursuing external opportunities with our recent acquisition of Koala Reading. We are leveraging its expertise in Chinese reading assessments, and plan to further develop a trailblazing English reading skill evaluation system that allows us to improve our product offerings. Furthermore, this acquisition widens our course offerings with additional Chinese courses, which is in line with the long term strategy of diversifying our curriculum portfolio. Along with our efforts in enhancing teacher operations, optimizing curriculums and developing AI-powered robotic tutors, the acquisition of Koala Reading is a testament to our commitment in providing the best learning experience to our students.
“In order to solidify our leadership in K12 one-on-one mass market English education, we are focused on ramping up our branding and marketing efforts and improving student satisfaction while also investing in product development and upgrading course offerings and services. We are excited to announce the appointment of Ms. Maine Mendoza as our latest Brand Ambassador and 51Talk Guest Teacher. Ms. Maine Mendoza is a well-known Filipino actress and social media influencer. Her appointment instantly became the most tweeted event in the Philippines and further strengthens our brand recognition in the country. I look forward to continuing to execute our mission to deliver long term benefits to all stakeholders,” concluded Mr. Huang.
“Starting off 2021 with such a solid financial and operating performance is well within our expectations,” said Mr. Min Xu, Chief Financial Officer of 51Talk. “I am pleased to report that in addition to robust growth in net revenues, we delivered another profitable quarter with GAAP net income of RMB8.0 million and non-GAAP net income of RMB16.8 million, primarily resulting from significantly higher lesson consumption and improved operating efficiency. In order to keep the Company on track for healthy growth and profitability, we are proactively refining our operations to maintain high efficiency at all levels, ultimately stimulating student growth and brand awareness, as a leading and dependable online education platform in China.”