Chinese giant iQIYI had the best-performing year in its corporate history in 2023

Chinese giant online platform iQIYI announced its unaudited financial results for the fourth quarter and fiscal year ended December 31, 2023. During the fourth quarter, the company got total revenues of RMB7.7 billion (US$1.1 billion1), increasing 1% year over year. Operating income was RMB773.7 million (US$109.0 million) and operating income margin was 10%, compared to operating income of RMB783.6 million and operating income margin of 10% in the same period in 2022.

Non-GAAP operating income2 was RMB927.8 million (US$130.7 million) and non-GAAP operating income margin was 12%, compared to non-GAAP operating income of RMB978.7 million and non-GAAP operating income margin of 13% in the same period in 2022. Net income attributable to iQIYI was RMB466.2 million (US$65.7 million), compared to net income attributable to iQIYI of RMB304.3 million in the same period in 2022. Non-GAAP net income attributable to iQIYI2 was RMB682.0 million (US$96.1 million), compared to non-GAAP net income attributable to iQIYI of RMB856.4 million in the same period in 2022.

During the fiscal year 2023, the total revenues were RMB31.9 billion (US$4.5 billion), representing a 10% increase from 2022. Operating income was RMB3.0 billion (US$421.1 million) and operating income margin was 9%, compared to operating income of RMB1.3 billion and operating income margin of 5% in 2022.

Non-GAAP operating income was RMB3.6 billion (US$513.2 million) and non-GAAP operating income margin was 11%, compared to non-GAAP operating income of RMB2.2 billion and non-GAAP operating income margin of 7% in 2022. Net income attributable to iQIYI was RMB1.9 billion (US$271.2 million), compared to net loss attributable to iQIYI of RMB136.2 million in 2022. Non-GAAP net income attributable to iQIYI was RMB2.8 billion (US$399.8 million), compared to non-GAAP net income attributable to iQIYI of RMB1.3 billion in 2022.

“Building on the momentum of an iconic turnaround in 2022, 2023 stood as our best-performing year in corporate history. Key financial metrics, including total revenues, operating and net income, and cash flows, all hit historical highs. In addition, ARM grew for five consecutive quarters, which reflected the high attractiveness of our content and the growing value of our membership service,” commented Yu Gong, Founder, Director, and Chief Executive Officer of iQIYI. “I am enthusiastic to witness our business resilience and operational excellence.”

“In addition to the satisfying revenue and profit performance, our financial health also strengthened considerably as both operating and free cash flows exceeded RMB3.3 billion in 2023,” commented Jun Wang, Chief Financial Officer of iQIYI. “With that, we believe we are on the right path to generate long-term value for our stakeholders.”

TOTAL REVENUES

Total revenues reached RMB7.7 billion (US$1.1 billion), increasing 1% year over year. Membership services revenue was RMB4.8 billion (US$677.3 million), increasing 1% year over year. The average daily number of total subscribing members for the quarter was 100.3 million, compared to 111.6 million for the same period last year. The number of total subscribing members was 101.1 million as of December 31, 2023, compared to 119.7 million as of December 31, 2022.

Online advertising services revenue was RMB1.7 billion (US$232.5 million), increasing 6% year over year. The increase was primarily driven by the growth of brand advertising business and, to a lesser extent, the growth in the performance-based advertising business. Content distribution revenue was RMB506.1 million (US$71.3 million), decreasing 21% year over year, primarily due to the decrease in barter transactions, partially offset by the increase of revenue from distribution of theatrical movies invested by iQIYI. Other revenues were RMB741.2 million (US$104.4 million), increasing 13% year over year, primarily driven by the increase of revenue derived from third-party cooperation.