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Roblox Reports Third Quarter 2022 Financial Results

Strong year over year growth in Daily Active Users, Hours Engaged and Bookings

Roblox Corporation (NYSE: RBLX), a global platform bringing millions of people together through shared experiences, released its third quarter 2022 financial and operational results today as well as key metrics for the month of October 2022. Separately, Roblox posted a letter to shareholders and supplemental materials on the Roblox investor relations website at ir.roblox.com.

Third Quarter 2022 Financial and Operational Highlights

  • Revenue was $517.7 million, up 2% year over year1
  • Net cash provided by operating activities of $67.1 million; Free cash flow was $(67.7) million
  • Bookings were $701.7 million, up 10% year over year, and up 15% year over year on a constant currency basis
  • Average Daily Active Users (DAUs) were 58.8 million, up 24% year over year
  • Hours Engaged were 13.4 billion, up 20% year over year
  • Average Bookings per DAU (ABPDAU) was $11.94, down 11% year over year

For October 2022 key metric estimates, please refer to our Q3 2022 Shareholder Letter at ir.roblox.com.

“We are delivering strong growth across our core operating metrics, powered by a growing developer community creating high-quality experiences that appeal to a broad, global audience,” said David Baszucki, Chief Executive Officer of Roblox. “We are creating innovative technologies to enable deeper forms of immersion, communication and expression to further enhance the value of the platform.”

“We are pleased with the third-quarter growth in users, engagement and bookings, which demonstrates the significant progress we are making on key platform initiatives such as aging up and international growth,” said Michael Guthrie, Chief Financial Officer of Roblox. “At the same time, we are continuing a disciplined capital allocation strategy focused on maximizing long-term shareholder value.”

Earnings Q&A Session

Roblox will host a live Q&A session to answer questions regarding their third quarter 2022 results on Wednesday, November 9, 2022 at 5:30 a.m. Pacific Time / 8:30 a.m. Eastern Time. The webcast will be open to the public at ir.roblox.com or by clicking here.

1 In Q3 2022, our estimated paying user life changed from 25 months to 28 months. Based on the carrying amount of deferred revenue as of June 30, 2022, the change resulted in a decrease in revenue of $111.0 million for the three months ended September 30, 2022.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the “safe harbor” provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including but not limited to, statements regarding our business, product, strategy and user growth, retention and monetization plans and trends, the plans and advances of our developers, our investment strategy, including our capital allocation strategy, our opportunities for and expectations of improvements in growth rate, particularly bookings, the benefits of our product and operational initiatives, including our “group grid,” our expectation of successfully executing such strategies and plans, our employee recruitment plans, our commitment to contain share dilution, our expectations for our quarterly and monthly financial and operational results and future growth rates, our estimates of infrastructure expenses for the balance of the year, and our expectations of future net losses. These forward-looking statements are made as of the date they were first issued and were based on current expectations, estimates, forecasts, and projections as well as the beliefs and assumptions of management. Words such as “expect,” “envision,” “anticipate,” “should,” “believe,” “hope,” “target,” “continue,” “project,” “plan,” “goals,” “opportunity,” “estimate,” “potential,” “predict,” “may,” “will,” “might,” “could,” “intend,” “shall,” and “suggest,” and variations of these terms or the negative of these terms and similar expressions are intended to identify these forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties, many of which involve factors or circumstances that are beyond our control. Our actual results could differ materially from those stated or implied in forward-looking statements due to a number of factors, including but not limited to risks detailed in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”), including our annual reports on Form 10-K, our quarterly reports on Form 10-Q and other filings and reports we make with the SEC from time to time. In particular, the following factors, among others, could cause results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements: our ability to successfully execute our business and growth strategy; the sufficiency of our cash and cash equivalents to meet our liquidity needs; the impact of our senior notes and any future indebtedness on our business, financial condition and results of operations; the demand for our platform in general; our ability to increase our number of new users and revenue generated from users; our ability to retain and expand our user base; the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and other macro economic trends (including currency exchange rates and inflation) on our business and the easing of restrictions related to the COVID-19 pandemic; the fluctuation of our results of operations and our key business measures on a quarterly basis in future periods, including as a result of changes in our accounting estimates; our ability to successfully develop and deploy new technologies to address the needs of our users; our ability to maintain and enhance our brand and reputation; our ability to hire and retain talent; news or social media coverage about Roblox, including but not limited to coverage that presents, or relies on, inaccurate, misleading, incomplete, or otherwise damaging information; any breach or access to user or third-party data; and our ability to maintain the security and availability of our platform. Additional information regarding these and other risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from our expectations is included in the reports we have filed or will file with the SEC, including our annual reports on Form 10-K and our quarterly reports on Form 10-Q.

The forward-looking statements included in this press release represent our views as of the date of this press release. We anticipate that subsequent events and developments will cause our views to change and all of our Key Metrics Estimates are subject to normal quarter end review and potential adjustments. We undertake no intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. These forward-looking statements should not be relied upon as representing our views as of any date subsequent to the date of this press release. Past performance is not necessarily indicative of future results and quarterly performance may materially differ from aggregation of the monthly Key Metrics for each month within the quarter.

ROBLOX CORPORATION
CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS
(in thousands, except par values)
(unaudited)
As of

September 30,

 

December 31,

2022

 

2021

 
Assets
Current assets:
Cash and cash equivalents

$

3,021,507

 

$

3,004,300

 

Accounts receivable—net of allowances

 

185,831

 

 

307,349

 

Prepaid expenses and other current assets

 

72,925

 

 

32,091

 

Deferred cost of revenue, current portion

 

387,817

 

 

406,025

 

Total current assets

 

3,668,080

 

 

3,749,765

 

Property and equipment—net

 

525,928

 

 

271,352

 

Operating lease right-of-use assets

 

452,852

 

 

221,285

 

Deferred cost of revenue, long term

 

204,921

 

 

137,524

 

Intangible assets, net

 

53,655

 

 

59,666

 

Goodwill

 

130,453

 

 

118,071

 

Other assets

 

2,435

 

 

2,933

 

Total assets

$

5,038,324

 

$

4,560,596

 

Liabilities and Stockholders’ Equity
Current liabilities:
Accounts payable

$

45,099

 

$

64,395

 

Accrued expenses and other current liabilities

 

273,832

 

 

180,769

 

Developer exchange liability

 

168,367

 

 

163,906

 

Deferred revenue—current portion

 

1,750,860

 

 

1,758,022

 

Total current liabilities

 

2,238,158

 

 

2,167,092

 

Deferred revenue—net of current portion

 

960,924

 

 

616,834

 

Operating lease liabilities

 

425,973

 

 

194,616

 

Long-term debt, net

 

988,663

 

 

987,723

 

Other long-term liabilities

 

13

 

 

1,408

 

Total liabilities

 

4,613,731

 

 

3,967,673

 

Commitments and contingencies
Stockholders' Equity
Common stock, $0.0001 par value; 5,000,000 and 5,000,000 authorized as of September 30, 2022, and December 31, 2021, respectively, 600,641 and 585,878 shares issued and outstanding as of September 30, 2022, and December 31, 2021, respectively; Class A common stock—4,935,000 and 4,935,000 shares authorized as of September 30, 2022, and December 31, 2021, respectively, 549,303 and 534,541 shares issued and outstanding as of September 30, 2022, and December 31, 2021, respectively; Class B common stock—65,000 and 65,000 shares authorized as of September 30, 2022, and December 31, 2021, respectively, 51,337 and 51,337 shares issued and outstanding as of September 30, 2022, and December 31, 2021, respectively

 

59

 

 

58

 

Additional paid-in capital

 

2,041,042

 

 

1,568,638

 

Accumulated other comprehensive income/(loss)

 

997

 

 

62

 

Accumulated deficit

 

(1,618,381

)

 

(983,941

)

Total Roblox Corporation stockholders' equity

 

423,717

 

 

584,817

 

Noncontrolling interests

 

876

 

 

8,106

 

Total stockholders' equity

 

424,593

 

 

592,923

 

Total liabilities and stockholders' equity

$

5,038,324

 

$

4,560,596

 

ROBLOX CORPORATION
CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS
(in thousands, except per share amounts)
(unaudited)
 

Three Months Ended September 30,

 

Nine Months Ended September 30,

2022

 

2021

 

2022

 

2021

Revenue(1)

$

517,707

 

$

509,336

 

$

1,646,048

 

$

1,350,412

 

Cost and expenses:
Cost of revenue(1)(2)

 

126,437

 

 

130,015

 

 

405,226

 

 

344,882

 

Developer exchange fees

 

151,470

 

 

129,952

 

 

441,740

 

 

378,604

 

Infrastructure and trust & safety

 

190,986

 

 

117,387

 

 

490,576

 

 

320,509

 

Research and development

 

235,551

 

 

138,245

 

 

625,070

 

 

359,637

 

General and administrative

 

81,165

 

 

51,584

 

 

217,613

 

 

243,637

 

Sales and marketing

 

32,105

 

 

19,599

 

 

87,708

 

 

58,591

 

Total cost and expenses

 

817,714

 

 

586,782

 

 

2,267,933

 

 

1,705,860

 

Loss from operations

 

(300,007

)

 

(77,446

)

 

(621,885

)

 

(355,448

)

Interest income

 

12,764

 

 

28

 

 

17,206

 

 

59

 

Interest expense

 

(10,005

)

 

-

 

 

(29,895

)

 

-

 

Other income/(expense), net

 

(4,302

)

 

(770

)

 

(7,732

)

 

(1,810

)

Loss before income taxes

 

(301,550

)

 

(78,188

)

 

(642,306

)

 

(357,199

)

Provision for/(benefit from) income taxes

 

352

 

 

(998

)

 

350

 

 

(976

)

Consolidated net loss

 

(301,902

)

 

(77,190

)

 

(642,656

)

 

(356,223

)

Net loss attributable to the noncontrolling interest

 

(4,104

)

 

(3,188

)

 

(8,216

)

 

(7,870

)

Net loss attributable to common stockholders

$

(297,798

)

$

(74,002

)

$

(634,440

)

$

(348,353

)

Net loss per share attributable to common stockholders, basic and diluted

$

(0.50

)

$

(0.13

)

$

(1.07

)

$

(0.73

)

Weighted-average shares used in computing net loss per share attributable to common
stockholders – basic and diluted

 

597,779

 

 

575,932

 

 

593,452

 

 

480,357

 

 
 

(1) In Q3 2022, our estimated paying user life changed from 25 months to 28 months. Based on the carrying amount of deferred revenue and deferred cost of revenue as of June 30, 2022, the change resulted in a decrease in revenue during the three months ended September 30, 2022 by $111.0 million, and a decrease in cost of revenue during the same period by $25.5 million.

(2) Depreciation of servers and infrastructure equipment included in infrastructure and trust & safety.

ROBLOX CORPORATION
CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS
(in thousands)
(unaudited)
     

Three Months Ended September 30,

 

Nine Months Ended September 30,

2022

 

2021

 

2022

 

2021

Cash flows from operating activities:  
Consolidated net loss

$

(301,902

)

$

(77,190

)

$

(642,656

)

$

(356,223

)

Adjustments to reconcile net loss including noncontrolling interests to net cash provided by operations:    
Depreciation and amortization

 

34,052

 

 

19,029

 

 

87,545

 

 

53,439

 

Stock-based compensation expense

 

161,359

 

 

89,319

 

 

420,042

 

 

221,722

 

Operating lease non-cash expense

 

18,815

 

 

11,392

 

 

49,115

 

 

31,936

 

Other non-cash charges/(credits)

 

(1,515

)

 

1,121

 

 

(34

)

 

1,137

 

Amortization of debt issuance costs

 

318

 

 

-

 

 

940

 

 

-

 

Changes in operating assets and liabilities, net of effect of acquisitions:    
Accounts receivable

 

1,630

 

 

47,126

 

 

119,948

 

 

77,086

 

Accounts payable

 

2,304

 

 

(2,543

)

 

(8,331

)

 

(230

)

Prepaid expenses and other current assets

 

(15,681

)

 

7,763

 

 

(42,604

)

 

(19,501

)

Other assets

 

(266

)

 

2,288

 

 

498

 

 

(4,188

)

Developer exchange liability

 

21,175

 

 

27,141

 

 

4,461

 

 

36,844

 

Accrued expenses and other current liabilities

 

2,642

 

 

(36,031

)

 

6,982

 

 

38,098

 

Other long-term liability

 

-

 

 

(1,606

)

 

(579

)

 

(1,022

)

Operating lease liabilities

 

(11,259

)

 

(11,413

)

 

(32,989

)

 

(24,055

)

Deferred revenue

 

187,991

 

 

131,439

 

 

336,928

 

 

616,375

 

Deferred cost of revenue

 

(32,519

)

 

(26,669

)

 

(49,189

)

 

(134,532

)

Net cash provided by operating activities

 

67,144

 

 

181,166

 

 

250,077

 

 

536,886

 

Cash flows from investing activities:    
Acquisition of property and equipment

 

(133,356

)

 

(2,963

)

 

(268,958

)

 

(48,331

)

Payments related to business combination, net of cash acquired

 

-

 

 

(45,692

)

 

(6,165

)

 

(45,692

)

Purchases of intangible assets

 

(1,500

)

 

(7,600

)

 

(1,500

)

 

(7,856

)

Net cash used in investing activities

 

(134,856

)

 

(56,255

)

 

(276,623

)

 

(101,879

)

Cash flows from financing activities:    
Proceeds from issuance of common stock

 

12,830

 

 

20,389

 

 

42,706

 

 

62,278

 

Payment of term license related obligations

 

-

 

 

-

 

 

(420

)

 

-

 

Payment of withholding taxes related to net share settlement of restricted stock units

 

-

 

 

-

 

 

(150

)

 

-

 

Net proceeds from issuance of preferred stock

 

-

 

 

-

 

 

-

 

 

534,286

 

Payment of debt issuance cost

 

-

 

 

-

 

 

(154

)

 

-

 

Payments related to business combination, after acquisition date

 

(150

)

-

 

(150

)

-

Net cash provided by financing activities

 

12,680

 

 

20,389

 

 

41,832

 

 

596,564

 

     
Effect of exchange rate changes on cash and cash equivalents

 

1,064

 

 

(3

)

 

1,921

 

 

45

 

     
Net increase in cash and cash equivalents

 

(53,968

)

 

145,297

 

 

17,207

 

 

1,031,616

 

Cash and cash equivalents    
Beginning of period

 

3,075,475

 

 

1,780,262

 

 

3,004,300

 

 

893,943

 

End of period

$

3,021,507

 

$

1,925,559

 

$

3,021,507

 

$

1,925,559

 

     
Supplemental disclosure of cash flow information:    
Cash paid for interest

 

-

 

 

-

 

$

19,590

 

 

-

 

Cash paid for income taxes

$

887

 

 

-

 

$

887

 

 

-

 

     
Supplemental disclosure of noncash investing and financing activities:    
Property and equipment additions in accounts payable and accrued expenses

$

111,121

 

$

32,935

 

$

111,121

 

$

32,935

 

Fair value of common stock and unregistered restricted stock units issued as consideration for business combination

 

-

 

$

31,274

 

 

-

 

$

31,274

 

Conversion of convertible preferred stock to common stock upon direct listing

 

-

 

$

879,113

 

 

-

 

$

879,113

 

Use of Non-GAAP Financial Measures

This press release and the accompanying tables contain the non-GAAP financial measures bookings, free cash flow, and Adjusted EBITDA.

We use this non-GAAP financial information to evaluate our ongoing operations, for internal planning and forecasting purposes, and ongoing operating trends for purposes of analyzing the covenants specified in the indenture governing our senior notes due 2030. We believe that this non-GAAP financial information may be helpful to investors because it provides consistency and comparability with past financial performance.

Bookings is defined as revenue plus the change in deferred revenue during the period and other non-cash adjustments. Bookings is equal to the amount of virtual currency purchased by users in a given period of measurement. We believe bookings provide a timelier indication of trends in our operating results that are not necessarily reflected in our revenue as a result of the fact that we recognize the majority of revenue over the estimated average lifetime of a paying user. The change in deferred revenue constitutes the vast majority of the reconciling difference from revenue to bookings. By removing these non-cash adjustments, we are able to measure and monitor our business performance based on the timing of actual transactions with our users and the cash that is generated from these transactions. Free cash flow represents the net cash provided by operating activities less purchases of property, equipment, and intangible assets. We believe that free cash flow is a useful indicator of our unit economics and liquidity that provides information to management and investors about the amount of cash generated from our core operations that, after the purchases of property, equipment, and intangible assets, can be used for strategic initiatives, including investing in our business, making strategic acquisitions, and strengthening our balance sheet. Adjusted EBITDA is a measure of operating performance used in certain covenant calculations specified in the indenture governing our senior notes due 2030 that is not calculated in accordance with GAAP and may not conform to the calculation of EBITDA in other circumstances. Adjusted EBITDA should not be considered as a substitute for net loss as determined in accordance with GAAP. We believe that, when considered together with reported amounts, Adjusted EBITDA is useful to investors and management in understanding our ongoing operations and ongoing operating trends for purposes of analyzing the covenants specified in the indenture governing our senior notes due 2030.

Non-GAAP financial measures have limitations in their usefulness to investors because they have no standardized meaning prescribed by GAAP and are not prepared under any comprehensive set of accounting rules or principles. In addition, other companies, including companies in our industry, may calculate similarly titled non-GAAP financial measures differently or may use other measures to evaluate their performance, all of which could reduce the usefulness of our non-GAAP financial information as a tool for comparison. As a result, our non-GAAP financial information is presented for supplemental informational purposes only and should not be considered in isolation from, or as a substitute for financial information presented in accordance with GAAP.

A reconciliation table of the most comparable GAAP financial measure to each non-GAAP financial measure used in this press release is included at the end of this release. We encourage investors and others to review our business, results of operations, and financial information in their entirety, not to rely on any single financial measure, and to view these non-GAAP measures in conjunction with the most directly comparable GAAP financial measure.

The following table presents a reconciliation of revenue, the most directly comparable financial measure calculated in accordance with GAAP, to bookings, for each of the periods presented:

 

Three Months Ended September 30,

 

Nine Months Ended September 30,

2022

 

2021

 

2022

 

2021

(dollars in thousands) (dollars in thousands)
Reconciliation of revenue to bookings:
Revenue

$

517,707

 

$

509,336

 

$

1,646,048

 

$

1,350,412

 

Add (deduct):
Change in deferred revenue

 

187,991

 

 

131,439

 

 

336,928

 

 

616,375

 

Other

 

(3,982

)

 

(2,942

)

 

(10,152

)

 

(11,197

)

Bookings

$

701,716

 

$

637,833

 

$

1,972,824

 

$

1,955,590

 

As used in the press release, constant currency is calculated by converting our current period financial results into U.S. dollars using the comparative prior period’s monthly exchange rates for our non-USD currencies.

The following table presents a reconciliation of net cash from operating activities, the most directly comparable financial measure calculated in accordance with GAAP, to free cash flow, for each of the periods presented:

Three Months Ended September 30,

 

Nine Months Ended September 30,

2022

 

2021

 

2022

 

2021

(dollars in thousands)

 

(dollars in thousands)

Reconciliation of net cash from operating activities to free cash flow:
Net cash provided by operating activities

$

67,144

 

$

181,166

 

$

250,077

 

$

536,886

 

Add (deduct):
Acquisition of property and equipment

 

(133,356

)

 

(2,963

)

 

(268,958

)

 

(48,331

)

Purchases of intangible assets

 

(1,500

)

 

(7,600

)

 

(1,500

)

 

(7,856

)

Free cash flow

$

(67,712

)

$

170,603

 

$

(20,381

)

$

480,699

 

Acquisition of property and equipment primarily includes servers, infrastructure equipment and tenant improvements.

The following table presents a reconciliation of consolidated net loss, the most directly comparable financial measure calculated in accordance with GAAP, to adjusted EBITDA, for each of the periods presented:

 

Three Months Ended September 30,

 

Nine Months Ended September 30,

2022

 

2021

 

2022

 

2021

Reconciliation of consolidated net loss to adjusted EBITDA: (dollars in thousands) (dollars in thousands)
Consolidated net loss

$

(301,902

)

$

(77,190

)

$

(642,656

)

$

(356,223

)

Add (deduct):
Interest income

 

(12,764

)

 

(28

)

 

(17,206

)

 

(59

)

Interest expense

 

10,005

 

 

-

 

 

29,895

 

 

-

 

Other income/(expense), net

 

4,302

 

 

770

 

 

7,732

 

 

1,810

 

Provision for/(benefit from) income taxes

 

352

 

 

(998

)

 

350

 

 

(976

)

Depreciation and amortization

 

34,052

 

 

19,029

 

 

87,545

 

 

53,439

 

Stock-based compensation expense

 

161,359

 

 

89,319

 

 

420,042

 

 

221,722

 

Change in deferred revenue

 

187,991

 

 

131,439

 

 

336,928

 

 

616,375

 

Change in deferred cost of revenue

 

(32,519

)

 

(26,669

)

 

(49,189

)

 

(134,532

)

Fees related to equity offering

 

-

 

 

-

 

 

-

 

 

50,586

 

Fees related to certain legal settlements

 

-

 

 

-

 

 

-

 

 

53,775

 

Adjusted EBITDA

$

50,876

 

$

135,672

 

$

173,441

 

$

505,917

 

About Roblox

Roblox’s mission is to connect a billion people with optimism and civility. Every day, tens of millions of people around the world have fun with friends as they explore millions of immersive digital experiences. All of these experiences are built by the Roblox community, made up of millions of creators. We believe in building a safe, civil, and diverse community—one that inspires and fosters creativity and positive relationships between people around the world. For more information, please visit corp.roblox.com.

ROBLOX and the Roblox logo are among the registered and unregistered trademarks of Roblox Corporation in the United States and other countries. © 2022 Roblox Corporation. All rights reserved.

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