Yatsen Q3 2023 Earnings Call Transcript

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November 21, 2023

Key Takeaways

  • Yatsen reported Q3 net revenue of RMB718.1 million, down 16.3% year-over-year, as skincare sales fell 4.1% and color cosmetics declined 21.5%, while premium skincare brands Galenic, Doctor Wu and Yifon together grew 7.4%.
  • Gross margin improved to 71.4% from 58.9% a year ago, driven by a higher mix of margin-rich skincare products and cost optimizations, though GAAP net loss margin widened to 27.6% (non-GAAP 18.1%) due to increased marketing investments.
  • Perfect Diary underwent a brand repositioning with the launch of its BioLeap Technology “BIOLEAP Essence Lipstick” in late Q3, receiving strong early user feedback and attracting more upper-middle-class consumers.
  • Yatsen strengthened its R&D capabilities, with Galenic presenting a patented snow algae peptide at the ISSEC conference and entering a strategic partnership with peptide leader Lupizou to co-develop anti-aging ingredients.
  • The board expanded the share repurchase program from $150 million to $200 million through November 19, 2025, and provided Q4 guidance of RMB1.01–1.06 billion in net revenue, implying 0–5% year-over-year growth.
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Earnings Conference Call
Yatsen Q3 2023
00:00 / 00:00

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Operator

Ladies and gentlemen, good day, and welcome to the Yatsen Third Quarter 2023 Earnings Conference Call. Today's conference is being recorded. At this time, I would like to turn the conference over to Irene Lyu, Vice President, Head of Strategic Investments and Capital Markets. Please go ahead.

Irene Lyu
Irene Lyu
VP and Head of Strategic Investments and Capital Markets at Yatsen

Thank you, operator. Please note the discussion today will contain forward-looking statements relating to the company's future performance and are intended to qualify for the safe harbor from liability as established by the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act. Such statements are not guarantees of future performance and are subject to certain risks and uncertainties, assumptions and other factors. Some of these risks are beyond the company's control and could cause actual results to differ materially from those mentioned in today's press release and this discussion. A general discussion of the risk factors could affect Yatsen's business and financial results is included in certain filings of the company with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The company does not undertake any obligation to update this forward-looking information, except as required by law. During today's call, management will also discuss certain non-GAAP financial measures for comparison purposes only.

Irene Lyu
Irene Lyu
VP and Head of Strategic Investments and Capital Markets at Yatsen

Please see the earnings release issued earlier today for a definition of non-GAAP financial measures and a reconciliation of G`AAP to non-GAAP financial results. Joining us today on the call from Yatsen's senior management team are Mr. Jinfeng Huang, our Founder, Chairman, and CEO, and Mr. Donghao Yang, our CFO and Director. Management will begin with prepared remarks, and the call will conclude with a Q&A session. As a reminder, this conference is being recorded. In addition, a webcast replay of this conference call will also be available on Yatsen's Investor Relations website at ir.yatsenglobal.com. I'll now turn the call over to Mr. Jinfeng Huang. Go ahead, sir.

Jinfeng Huang
Jinfeng Huang
Founder, Chairman and CEO at Yatsen

Thank you, Irene, and thank you everyone for participating in Yatsen's third quarter 2023 earnings conference call today. In the third quarter of 2023, China's beauty industry remained in the mild recovery phase that began as the country emerged from the pandemic earlier this year. According to the National Bureau of Statistics of China, total retail sales of consumer goods grew by 4.2% year-over-year, and the total beauty retail sales increased by 2.6% year-over-year, both representing a deceleration in year-over-year growth rates from the second quarter. Online beauty sales showed a similar pattern in the third quarter. For both color cosmetics and skincare, combined total sales on Tmall and Douyin recorded a slower growth rate than in the second quarter of 2023. Amid uncertainties in consumer demand, Yatsen remained committed to its strategic transformation plan.

Jinfeng Huang
Jinfeng Huang
Founder, Chairman and CEO at Yatsen

We continuously strive to build strong brand equity based on superior product performance and consumer satisfaction. For the third quarter of 2023, we recorded total net revenue of CNY 718.1 million, in line with our previous guidance. Net revenue from our skincare brand declined by 4.1% year-over-year, mainly attributable to our strategy decision to phase out the Abby's Choice brand. Our clinical and premium skincare brands, including Galénic, DR.WU, and Eve Lom, delivered another solid performance, recording 7.4% year-over-year growth in combined net revenues, and further increasing their contribution to total net revenues as compared with the prior year period.

Jinfeng Huang
Jinfeng Huang
Founder, Chairman and CEO at Yatsen

Net revenues from color cosmetics brands decreased by 21.5% year-over-year, primarily due to the decline in Perfect Diary sales as a result of the timing of new product launches near the end of the third quarter and the closure of underperforming offline stores. The number of Perfect Diary offline stores totaled 123 as of the end of the third quarter, compared with 198 a year ago. Net revenues from Little Ondine and Pink Bear continued to grow as both brands raised their brand awareness among targeted consumers. Yatsen's gross margin improved to 71.4% in the third quarter, from 68.9% in the prior year period.

Jinfeng Huang
Jinfeng Huang
Founder, Chairman and CEO at Yatsen

Due to the rising contribution from higher growth margin skincare brands and ongoing cost optimization across our brand portfolio, net loss and the non-GAAP net loss margin expanded to 27.6% and 80.1%, respectively, as we increased investment in the Perfect Diary brand upgrade and preparations for the Double Eleven shopping festival. Turning now to our brands and products. During the third quarter of 2023, we repositioned the Perfect Diary brand, carrying out a series of campaigns with the refreshed visual identities and new product launches. The brand's new hero product, Biolip Essence Lipstick, leverages our exclusive biolip technology, which creates a bionic sebum film upon application to protect the lip's fragile skin barrier. Biolip's strong efficacy in lip line reduction was validated by the prestigious Ruijin Hospital and the SGS testing agency.

Jinfeng Huang
Jinfeng Huang
Founder, Chairman and CEO at Yatsen

Our two other color cosmetics brands, Little Ondine and Pink Bear, both formed co-branding partnerships with popular IPs that deeply resonated with young consumers. For our skincare brands, we continued to engage deeply in brand building, further cultivating each brand's distinctive audience. Galénic marked its 45th anniversary with a gala celebration that hosted an array of celebrities, media, and scholars in Paris. The brand also officially announced its scientific research cooperation with Hospital Saint-Louis, a well-known dermatology hospital in Paris, and established the Galénic Dermatology Research Foundation. In addition, DR.WU celebrated its 20th anniversary. Its reputation as a high quality clinical brand and a pioneer in the use of mandelic acid continued to strengthen as the brand was honored as Asia's Leading Mandelic Acid Skincare Brand by Euromonitor, the world's top independent provider of market research and industry analysis.

Jinfeng Huang
Jinfeng Huang
Founder, Chairman and CEO at Yatsen

Furthermore, Eve Lom introduced renowned singer and actor Xiao Zhan as its brand ambassador to increase brand awareness and establish a broader customer base. Moving on to R&D. R&D expenses as a percentage of revenues were 3.4%-4%. In September, Yatsen and the Galénic brand attended the IFSCC conference in Barcelona, Spain, and presented a scientific paper on the brand's patent, Snow Algae Peptide. At the conference, Galénic also announced that it has entered into strategic cooperation with the global peptide leader, Lubrizol, to jointly research new ingredients, collaborate on anti-aging product research, and expand Yatsen's open lab research and development boundaries. Before handing the call over to Donghao, I would like to provide an update on our share repurchase program.

Jinfeng Huang
Jinfeng Huang
Founder, Chairman and CEO at Yatsen

As announced earlier today, our board of directors has approved and authorized a change to the size and term of our share repurchase program, increasing the aggregate value of shares that may be repurchased under the share repurchase program from $150 million to $200 million, and extending the effective term of the share repurchase program through November nineteenth, 2025. This further demonstrates our confidence in Yatsen's prospects. To summarize, China's beauty market is still in the process of a modest recovery this year. Looking forward, we will continue to adapt flexibly and are confident in our resources and ability to advance our strategic transformation plan. With that, I will now turn the call over to our CFO, Donghao Yang, to discuss our financial performance. Thank you, everyone.

Donghao Yang
Donghao Yang
CFO and Director at Yatsen

Thank you, David, and hello, everyone. Before I get started, I would like to clarify that all financial numbers presented today are in renminbi amounts, and all percentage changes refer to year-over-year changes, unless otherwise noted. Total net revenues for the third quarter of 2023 decreased by 16.3% to CNY 718.1 million, from CNY 857.9 million for the prior period. The decrease was primarily attributable to a 21.5% year-over-year decrease in net revenues from color cosmetics brands, combined with a 4.1% year-over-year decrease in net revenues from skincare brands. Gross profit for the third quarter of 2023 decreased by 13.3% to CNY 512.8 million, from CNY 591.3 million for the prior period.

Donghao Yang
Donghao Yang
CFO and Director at Yatsen

Gross margin in the third quarter of 2023 increased to 71.4% from 68.9% for the prior period. The increase was driven by first, increasing sales of higher gross margin products from skincare brands and secondly, more disciplined pricing and discount policies, and thirdly, cost optimization across all of our brand portfolios. Total operating expenses for the third quarter of 2023 decreased by 13.1% to CNY 744.3 million, from CNY 857 million for the prior period. As a percentage of total net revenues, total operating expenses for the third quarter of 2023 were 103.6%, as compared with 99.9% for the prior period.

Donghao Yang
Donghao Yang
CFO and Director at Yatsen

Fulfillment expenses for the third quarter of 2023 were CNY 56 million, as compared with CNY 63.8 million for the prior period. As a percentage of total net revenues, fulfillment expenses for the third quarter of 2023 increased to 7.8% from 7.4% for the prior period. The increase was primarily attributable to the deleveraging effect of lower net revenues in the third quarter of 2023. Selling and marketing expenses for the third quarter of 2023 were CNY 511.7 million, as compared with CNY 564.8 million for the prior period. As a percentage of total net revenues, selling and marketing expenses for the third quarter of 2023 increased to 71.3% from 65.8% for the prior period.

Donghao Yang
Donghao Yang
CFO and Director at Yatsen

The increase was primarily attributable to increased investments in the Perfect Diary brand upgrade and preparations for the Double Eleven Shopping Festival. General and administrative expenses for the third quarter of 2023 were CNY 151.8 million, as compared with CNY 194.5 million for the prior period. As a percentage of total net revenues, general and administrative expenses for the third quarter of 2023 decreased to 21.1% from 22.7% for the prior period. The decrease was primarily attributable to a reduction in compensation, corresponding to a decrease in general and administrative headcount. Research and development expenses for the third quarter of 2023 were 24.7 million, as compared with 33.9 million for the prior period.

Donghao Yang
Donghao Yang
CFO and Director at Yatsen

As a percentage of total net revenues, research and development expenses for the third quarter of 2023 decreased to 3.4% from 3.9% for the prior period. The decrease was primarily attributable to our efforts to maintain research and development expenses at a reasonable level relative to total net revenues. Loss from operations for the third quarter of 2023 decreased by 12.9% to CNY 231.5 million from CNY 265.7 million for the prior period. Operating loss margin was 32.2%, as compared with 31% for the prior period.

Donghao Yang
Donghao Yang
CFO and Director at Yatsen

Non-GAAP loss from operations for the third quarter of 2023 increased by 1.2% to CNY 164.6 million from CNY 162.6 million for the prior period. Non-GAAP operating loss margin was 22.9%, as compared with 19% for the prior period. Net loss for the third quarter of 2023 decreased by 6.1% to CNY 197.9 million from CNY 210.7 million for the prior period. Net loss margin was 27.6%, as compared with 24.6% for the prior period. Net loss attributable to Yatsen ordinary shareholders per diluted ADS for the third quarter of 2023 was CNY 0.36, as compared with CNY 0.37 for the prior period.

Donghao Yang
Donghao Yang
CFO and Director at Yatsen

Non-GAAP net loss for the third quarter of 2023 increased by 3% to CNY 130.2 million from CNY 126.5 million for the prior period. Non-GAAP net loss margin was 18.1%, as compared with 14.7% for the prior period. Non-GAAP net loss attributable to Yatsen ordinary shareholders for diluted ADS for the third quarter of 2023 was 0.24, as compared with 0.22 for the prior period.

Donghao Yang
Donghao Yang
CFO and Director at Yatsen

As of September 30th, 2023, we had cash, restricted cash, and short-term investments of CNY 2.24 billion, as compared with CNY 2.63 billion as of December 31st, 2022. Net cash use in operating activities for the third quarter of 2023 was CNY 163.4 million, compared with net cash generated from operating activities of CNY 21.8 million for the prior year period. Looking at our business outlook for the fourth quarter of 2023, we expect our total net revenues to be between CNY 1.01 billion and CNY 1.06 billion, representing a 0%-5% increase year-over-year. These forecasts reflect our current and preliminary views on the market and operational conditions, which are subject to change. With that, I would now like to open the call to Q&A.

Operator

Yes, thank you. We will now begin the question and answer session. To ask a question, you may press star, then one on your touchtone phone. If you are using a speakerphone, please pick up your handset before pressing the keys. To withdraw your question, please press star then two. For the benefit of all participants on today's call, if you wish to ask your question to management in Chinese, please immediately repeat your question in English. At this time, we will pause momentarily to assemble the roster. The first question comes from Maggie Huang with CICC.

Maggie Huang
Maggie Huang
Research Analyst at CICC

Well, thanks for taking my question. This is Maggie Huang from CICC. I have two questions. The first one is regarding the new products of Perfect Diary. We're seeing the launch of Bio Lip Essence Lipstick and also foundations in Q3. So is there any feedback we've got from the customers, and how should we expect on their performance in next year? This is for the first question. And my second question is about our guidance. We've guided a positive revenue growth for Q4, and which is an encouraging signal. So behind this guidance, could management give us more color on your expectation for both skincare and color cosmetic sectors in Q4? And like, what are the key drivers for us to achieve that goal? That's my questions. Thank you.

Irene Lyu
Irene Lyu
VP and Head of Strategic Investments and Capital Markets at Yatsen

So yeah, thank you for the question. Let me take the first one. For Perfect Diary's new lipstick launch, which is the Bio Lip Essence lipsticks. After it launched at the end of September, we have received very positive feedback from our users as they enjoy very strong efficacy from the lipsticks. Basically, our philosophy is to have a very perfect makeup look, combined with skin-level efficacy benefits from the lipstick. So that's number one. And then secondly, the user profile also started to shift after our brand upgrade and also the new launch. Historically, our consumers are most like mostly Gen Zs and also young consumers from the lower-tier cities.

Irene Lyu
Irene Lyu
VP and Head of Strategic Investments and Capital Markets at Yatsen

But then after we launched this new product and the brand upgrade, given that our price point starts to increase and with new look and benefits, we start to see more high-value consumers coming to buy our lipsticks, including, for example, the sophisticated young mom and also the upper middle class. And also, since the launch, we have seen very positive ranking performance on both Tmall and Douyin. So, the launch of this lipstick was only at the end of September, so it haven't really contributed much of the Q3 performance. But in Q4 and Double Eleven, we continue to see this product to gain market share.

Donghao Yang
Donghao Yang
CFO and Director at Yatsen

Yeah, and your second question, I think Irene has already covered, so, you know, part of the answer for your question. You know, we launched our new product for Perfect Diary towards the end of mid to end of September, Q3. And the sales contribution from those new products, we've started to show on our PNLs, you know, starting in Q4. So that's one reason. One other reason is, you know, Q4 has traditionally been a strong season for our skincare products. And, if you look at our, you know, skincare products, and the three main skincare brands, you know, have been growing really fast in the past many quarters, and we are expecting strong growth from those skincare brands.

Donghao Yang
Donghao Yang
CFO and Director at Yatsen

So all in all, you know, with the slowdown of the decline, sales decline of Perfect Diary brand and strong growth from those other skincare brands, that's why, you know, we are expecting a strong quarter in Q4. And therefore, you know, we give the guidance of 0 to 5% year-over-year growth. As you know, in the past, almost two years, you know, the sales of the company have been declining. And hopefully, you know, that decline has bottomed out, and we do expect our sales to start to gain traction in the foreseeable future.

Maggie Huang
Maggie Huang
Research Analyst at CICC

Got it. That's very helpful. Thank you very much, and I have no more questions.

Operator

Thank you. And once again, please press star then one, if you would like to ask a question. And once more as a reminder, star then one will allow you to ask a question. All right, this concludes the question and answer session. I would like to turn the call to Irene Lyu for any closing comments.

Irene Lyu
Irene Lyu
VP and Head of Strategic Investments and Capital Markets at Yatsen

Thank you once again for joining us today. If you have any other further questions, please feel free to contact us at Yatsen directly or at Yatsen Financial Communications. Our company information for IR in both China and the U.S. can be found in today's press release. Have a great day. Thank you.

Operator

Thank you. The conference is now concluded. Thank you for attending today's presentation. You may now disconnect.

Executives
    • Donghao Yang
      Donghao Yang
      CFO and Director
    • Irene Lyu
      Irene Lyu
      VP and Head of Strategic Investments and Capital Markets
    • Jinfeng Huang
      Jinfeng Huang
      Founder, Chairman and CEO
Analysts
    • Maggie Huang
      Research Analyst at CICC
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