Youdao Reports Third Quarter 2020 Unaudited Financial Results

HANGZHOU,China,Nov. 19,2020 -- Youdao,Inc. ("Youdao" or the "Company") (NYSE: DAO),a leading intelligent learning company in China,today announced its unaudited financial results for the third quarter ended September 30,2020.

Third Quarter 2020 Financial Highlights

Total net revenueswere RMB896.0 million (US$132.0 million),a 159.0%increase from the same period in 2019.

- Net revenues from learning services and productswere RMB763.5 million (US$112.4 million),a 239.1% increase from the same period in 2019.

- Net revenues from online marketing serviceswere RMB132.6 million (US$19.5 million),a 9.8% increase from the same period in 2019.

Gross billings ofonline courses[1]increased 228.4% year-over-yearto RMB955.5million (US$140.7million) and gross billings of Youdao Premium Courses[2] increased 308.6% year-over-yearto RMB877.0million (US$129.2million).

Gross marginwas 45.9%,compared with 25.8% for the same period in 2019.

Deferred revenue from online courseswas RMB992.4million (US$146.2million),compared with RMB407.9million as of December 31,2019.

[1]Gross billings is a non-GAAP financial measure.Gross billings for a specific period refers to the total amount of consideration for Youdao's online courses sold on Youdao Premium Courses,NetEase Cloud Classroomand China University MOOC,net of the total amount of refunds,in such period. See "Non-GAAP Measures" and "Unaudited Reconciliation of GAAP and non-GAAP Results" at the end ofthis press release.

[2]Youdao Premium Courses are Youdao's flagship online learning offerings primarily focused on K-12 students,covering a wide spectrum of subject matters,learning goals and areas of interest.

Third Quarter 2020 Key Operating and Financial Data

For the three months ended September 30

(in millions,RMB)

2019

2020

% of Change

Gross billings of online courses

290.9

955.5

228.4%

Gross billings of Youdao Premium Courses

214.6

877.0

308.6%

Paid student enrollments ofYoudao Premium Courses (in thousands)

237.1

623.5

163.0%

K-12 paid student enrollments

92.7

498.7

437.9%

Adult paid student enrollments

144.4

124.8

-13.5%

Gross billings per paid student enrollment of Youdao Premium Courses (in RMB)

905

1,406

55.4%

"Significant increases in our K-12 Youdao Premium Course enrollments drove our robust top-line growth in the third quarter," said Dr. Feng Zhou,Chief Executive Officer and Director of Youdao. "With core operating and financial improvements to our business and increased marketing,our online courses reached RMB955.5 million in gross billings,and gross margin of learning services expanded to 53.9% in the third quarter,up from just 26.7% a year ago. We also continue to lead the market in intelligent learning devices,with sales accelerating to RMB163.1 million,primarily from the K-12 population.

"As the online education market quickly gets more expansive and more competitive,our unique product matrix,comprising online courses,intelligent devices,and learning apps,enables us to better address customer needs in innovative ways and to achieve organic growth. We will continue to scale,delivering high quality products and services to more students,to propel our long-term growth." Dr. Zhou concluded.

Third Quarter 2020 Financial Results

Net Revenues

Net revenues for the third quarter of 2020 were RMB896.0 million (US$132.0 million),a 159.0% increase from RMB345.9 million for the same period of 2019.

Net revenues from learning services and products were RMB763.5 million (US$112.4 million) for the third quarter of 2020,a 239.1% increase from RMB225.2 million for the same period of 2019. The year-over-year growth from learning services was primarily attributable to the increased revenues generated from online courses,which were further driven by a substantial increase in both the paid student enrollments for K-12 courses of Youdao Premium Courses and gross billings per paid student enrollment of Youdao Premium Courses. The paid student enrollments for K-12 courses of Youdao Premium Courses increased by 437.9% year-over-year to 498,700 in the third quarter of 2020. Gross billings per paid student enrollment of Youdao Premium Courses increased by 55.4% year-over-year to RMB1,406 in the third quarter of 2020. Revenues generated from Youdao's intelligent learning products also increased by 289.3% year-over-year to RMB163.1 million (US$24.0 million) in the third quarter of 2020,which was primarily driven by the expanded sales volume of Youdao Dictionary Pen.

Net revenues from online marketing services were RMB132.6 million (US$19.5 million) for the third quarter of 2020,a 9.8% increase from RMB120.8 million for the same period in 2019.

Gross Profit and Gross Margin

Gross profit for the third quarter of 2020 was RMB411.6 million (US$60.6 million),a 361.2% increase from RMB89.2 million for the same period of 2019. Gross margin increased to 45.9% for the third quarter of 2020 from 25.8% for the same period of 2019.

Gross margin for learning services and products increased to 48.8% for the third quarter of 2020 from 27.5% for the same period of 2019,primarily attributable to improved gross margin in online courses,which was positively impacted by improved economies of scale and the continuous optimization of Youdao's faculty compensation structure.

Gross margin for online marketing services was 29.5% for the third quarter of 2020,compared with 22.6% for the same period of 2019. The increase was mainly attributable to more revenue generated from brand advertising services,which carry a higher gross margin profile.

Operating Expenses

Total operating expenses for the third quarter of 2020 were RMB1.3 billion (US$192.3 million),representing an increase of 303.0%,compared with RMB324.0 million for the same period of last year.

Sales and marketing expenses for the third quarter of 2020 were RMB1.1 billion (US$169.1 million),representing an increase of 397.0%,compared with RMB231.0 million for the same period of 2019. This increase was mainly driven by intensified sales and marketing efforts associated with student acquisition and branding enhancement during Youdao's summer campaign,as well as increased compensation expenses related to the expansion of the sales and marketing team for Youdao's online courses.

Research and development expenses for the third quarter of 2020 were RMB121.0 million (US$17.8 million),representing an increase of 61.5%,compared with RMB74.9 million for the same period of 2019. The increase was primarily due to increased payroll-related expenses including share-based compensation expenses,as well as rental and facility expenses associated with an increased number of course development and technology professionals.

General and administrative expenses for the third quarter of 2020 were RMB36.6 million (US$5.4 million),representing an increaseof 102.7%,compared with RMB18.1 million for the same period of 2019. The increase was mainly attributable to increased payroll-related expenses including share-based compensation expensescharged in the third quarter of 2020.

Loss from Operations

Loss from operations for the third quarter of 2020 was RMB894.0 million (US$131.7 million),compared with RMB234.7 million for the same period in 2019. The margin of loss from operations was 99.8%,compared with 67.9% for the same period of last year.

Net Loss Attributable to Youdao's Ordinary Shareholders

Net loss attributable to Youdao's ordinary shareholders for the third quarter of 2020 was RMB877.8 million (US$129.3 million),compared with RMB242.2 million for the same period of last year. Non-GAAP net loss attributable to Youdao's ordinary shareholders for the third quarter of 2020 was RMB865.7 million (US$127.5 million),compared with RMB238.8 million for the same period of last year.

Basic and diluted net loss per American Depositary Share ("ADS") attributable to ordinary shareholders for the third quarter of 2020 was RMB7.73 (US$1.14),compared with RMB2.63 for the same period of 2019. Non-GAAP basic and diluted net loss per ADS attributable to ordinary shareholders was RMB7.63 (US$1.12),compared with RMB2.60 for the same period of 2019.

Balance Sheet

As of September 30,2020,Youdao's cash,cash equivalents,time deposits and short-term investments totaled RMB1.1 billion (US$166.9 million),compared with RMB1.6 billion as of December 31,2019. The decrease was primarily attributable to more payment made due to increased sales and marketing activities during the summer campaign. For the third quarter of 2020,net cash used in operating activities was RMB593.4 million (US$87.4 million),capital expenditures totaled RMB12.1 million (US$1.8 million),and depreciation and amortization expenses amounted to RMB4.3 million (US$0.6 million).

As of September 30,the Company's contract liabilities,which mainly consist of deferred revenues generated from Youdao's online courses,were RMB1.1 billion (US$156.9 million),representing an increase of 133.3% from RMB456.8 million as of December 31,2019.

Conference Call

Youdao's management team will host a teleconference call with simultaneous webcast at 6:00 a.m. Eastern Time on Thursday,November 19,2020 (Beijing/Hong Kong Time: 7:00 p.m.,Thursday,2020). Youdao's management will be on the call to discuss the financialresults and answer questions.

Dial-in details for the earnings conference call are as follows:

United States (toll free):

+1-888-346-8982

International:

+1-412-902-4272

Mainland China (toll free):

400-120-1203

Hong Kong (toll free):

800-905-945

Hong Kong:

+852-3018-4992

Conference ID:

10149588

A live and archived webcast of the conference call will be available on the Company's investor relations website at http://ir.youdao.com.

A replay of the conference call will be accessible by phone one hour after the conclusion of the live call at the following numbers,until November 26,2020:

United States:

+1-877-344-7529

International:

+1-412-317-0088

Replay Access Code:

10149588

About Youdao,Inc.

Youdao,Inc. (NYSE: DAO) is a leading intelligent learning company in China dedicated to developing and using technologies to provide learning content,applications and solutions to users of all ages. Building on the popularity of its online knowledge tools such as Youdao Dictionary,Youdao Cloudnote and Youdao Translation,Youdao now offers online courses covering a wide spectrum of age groups,subject matters,learning goals and areas of interest. In addition,Youdao has developed a variety of interactive learning apps and smart learning devices. Youdao was founded in 2006 as part of NetEase,Inc. (NASDAQ: NTES; HKEX: 9999),a leading internet technology company in China.

For more information,please visit: http://ir.youdao.com.

Non-GAAP Measures

Youdao considers and uses non-GAAP financial measures,such as gross billings and non-GAAP net income/(loss) attributable to the Company's ordinary shareholders and non-GAAP basic and diluted earnings/(loss) per ADS,as supplemental metrics in reviewing and assessing its operating performance and formulating its business plan. The presentation of non-GAAP financial measures is not intended to be considered in isolation or as a substitute for the financial information prepared and presented in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America ("U.S. GAAP").

Youdao defines gross billings for a specific period as the total amount of consideration for online courses sold onYoudao Premium Courses,in such period. The management uses gross billings as a performance measurement because the Company generally bills students for the entire course tuition at the time of sale of the courses and recognizes revenue proportionally over an average of the learning periods of different online courses. Youdao defines non-GAAP net income/(loss) attributable to the Company's ordinary shareholders as net income/(loss) attributable to the Company's ordinary shareholders excluding share-based compensation expenses. Non-GAAP net income/(loss) attributable to the Company's shareholders enables Youdao's management to assess its operating results without considering the impact of share-based compensation expenses,which are non-cash charges. Youdao believes that these non-GAAP financial measures provide useful information to investors in understanding and evaluating the Company's current operating performance and prospects in the same manner as management does,if they so choose.

Non-GAAP financial measures are not defined under U.S. GAAP and are not presented in accordance with U.S. GAAP. Non-GAAP financial measures have limitations as analytical tools,which possibly does not reflect all items of expense that affect our operations. Share-based compensation expenses have been and may continue to be incurred in our business and are not reflected in the presentation of non-GAAP net income/(loss) attributable to the Company's ordinary shareholders. In addition,the non-GAAP financial measures Youdao uses may differ from the non-GAAP measures uses by other companies,including peer companies,and therefore their comparability may be limited.

The presentation of these non-GAAP financial measures is not intended to be considered in isolation from or as a substitute for the financial information prepared and presented in accordance with GAAP. For more information on these non-GAAP financial measures,please see the table captioned "Unaudited Reconciliation of GAAP and non-GAAP Results" set forth at the end of this release.

The accompanying tables have more details on the reconciliations between our GAAP financial measures that are most directly comparable to non-GAAP financial measures. Youdao encourages you to review its financial information in its entirety and not rely on a single financial measure.

Exchange Rate Information

This announcement contains translations of certain RMB amounts into U.S. dollars ("US$") at specified rates solely for the convenience of the reader. Unless otherwise stated,all translations from RMB to US$ were made at the rate of RMB6.7896 to US$1.00,the exchange rate on September 30,2020 set forth in the H.10 statistical release of the Federal Reserve Board. The Company makes no representation that the RMB or US$ amounts referred could be converted into US$ or RMB,as the case may be,at any particular rate or at all.

Safe Harbor Statement

This press release contains forward-looking statements. These statements are made under the "safe harbor" provisions of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Statements that are not historical facts,including statements about the Company's beliefs and expectations,are forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements involve inherent risks and uncertainties,and a number of factors could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in any forward-looking statement. In some cases,forward-looking statements can be identified by words or phrases such as "may," "will," "expect," "anticipate," "target," "aim," "estimate," "intend," "plan," "believe," "potential," "continue," "is/are likely to" or other similar expressions. The Company may also make written or oral forward-looking statements in its reports filed with,or furnished to,the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission,in its annual reports to shareholders,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,are forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements involve inherent risks and uncertainties. Further information regarding such risks,uncertainties or factors is included in the Company's filings with the SEC. All information provided in this press release is as of the date of this press release,and the Company does not undertake any duty to update such information,except as required under applicable law.

For investor and media inquiries,please contact:

In China:

Regina Wang

Youdao,Inc.

Tel: +86-10-8255-8963

E-mail: IR@rd.netease.com

The Piacente Group,Inc.

Emilie Wu

Tel: +86-21-6039-8363

E-mail: youdao@thepiacentegroup.com

In the United States:

The Piacente Group,Inc.

Brandi Piacente

Tel: +1-212-481-2050

E-mail: youdao@thepiacentegroup.com

YOUDAO,INC.

UNAUDITED CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS

(RMB and USD in thousands)

As of December 31,

As of September 30,

2019

2020

2020

RMB

RMB

USD(1)

Assets

Current assets:

Cash and cash equivalents

173,328

77,975

11,484

Time deposits

1,325,737

817,475

120,401

Short-term investments

121,126

237,418

34,968

Accounts receivable,net

200,675

334,329

49,241

Inventories,net

73,225

91,938

13,541

Amounts due from NetEase Group

14,930

5,728

844

Prepayment and other current assets

120,891

200,584

29,544

Total current assets

2,029,912

1,765,447

260,023

Non-current assets:

Property and equipment,net

24,551

39,488

5,816

Operating lease right-of-use assets,net

23,873

83,463

12,293

Other assets,net

8,128

26,776

3,943

Total non-current assets

56,552

149,727

22,052

Total assets

2,086,464

1,915,174

282,075

Liabilities and Shareholders' Equity/(Deficit)

Current liabilities:

Accounts payables

62,675

119,175

17,553

Payroll payable

94,488

97,045

14,293

Amounts due to NetEase Group

48,126

38,116

5,614

Contract liabilities

456,805

1,065,563

156,940

Taxes payable

25,977

35,501

5,229

Accrued liabilities and other payables

192,643

583,497

85,940

Short-term loans from NetEase Group

878,000

878,000

129,315

Total current liabilities

1,758,714

2,816,897

414,884

Non-current liabilities:

Long-term lease liabilities

21,206

65,279

9,615

Other non-current liabilities

5,517

4,394

647

Total non-current liabilities

26,723

69,673

10,262

Total liabilities

1,785,437

2,886,570

425,146

Shareholders' equity/(deficit):

Youdao's shareholders' equity/(deficit)

300,091

(972,573)

(143,244)

Noncontrolling interests

936

1,177

173

Total shareholders' equity/(deficit)

301,027

(971,396)

(143,071)

Total liabilities and shareholders' equity/(deficit)

2,075

Note 1:

The conversion of Renminbi (RMB) into United States dollars (USD) is based on the noon buying rate of USD1.00=RMB6.7896 on the last trading

day of September (September 30,2020) as set forth in the H.10 statistical release of the U.S. Federal Reserve Board.

YOUDAO,INC.

UNAUDITED CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS

(RMB and USD in thousands,except share and per ADS data)

Three Months Ended

Nine Months Ended

September 30,

June 30,

September 30,

2019

2020

2020

2020

2019

2020

RMB

RMB

RMB

USD(1)

RMB

RMB

Net revenues:

Learning services

183,256

433,697

600,350

88,422

454,980

1,423,025

Online marketing services

120,753

103,212

132,585

19,528

354,494

335,047

Learning products

41,899

86,381

163,106

24,023

84,977

302,647

Total net revenues

345,908

623,290

896,041

131,973

894,451

2,060,719

Cost of revenues(2):

(256,674)

(341,751)

(484,488)

(71,357)

(646,259)

(1,131,902)

Gross profit

89,234

281,539

411,553

60,616

248,192

928,817

Operating expenses:

Sales and marketing expenses (2)

(230,975)

(445,151)

(1,147,927)

(169,073)

(417,111)

(1,892,237)

Research and development expenses (2)

(74,929)

(91,423)

(120,991)

(17,820)

(186,113)

(296,513)

General and administrative expenses (2)

(18,072)

(27,978)

(36,639)

(5,396)

(41,856)

(93,080)

Total operating expenses

(323,976)

(564,552)

(1,305,557)

(192,289)

(645,080)

(2,281,830)

Loss from operations

(234,742)

(283,013)

(894,004)

(131,673)

(396,888)

(1,353,013)

Interest (expense)/income,net

(4,071)

(424)

(1,217)

(179)

(16,433)

(1,518)

Others,939

25,619

17,352

2,556

17,192

51,547

Loss before tax

(229,874)

(257,818)

(877,869)

(129,296)

(396,129)

(1,302,984)

Income tax expenses

(802)

(9)

(240)

(35)

(2,441)

(2,434)

Net loss

(230,676)

(257,827)

(878,109)

(129,331)

(398,570)

(1,418)

Net (income)/loss attributable to noncontrolling interests

(454)

21

304

44

(935)

383

Net loss attributable to the Company

(231,130)

(257,806)

(877,805)

(129,287)

(399,505)

(1,035)

Accretions of convertible redeemable preferred shares to redemption value

(11,053)

-

-

-

(32,209)

-

Net loss attributable to ordinary shareholders of the Company

(242,183)

(257,287)

(431,714)

(1,035)

Basic net loss per ADS

(2.63)

(2.30)

(7.73)

(1.14)

(4.69)

(11.60)

Diluted net loss per ADS

(2.63)

(2.30)

(7.73)

(1.14)

(4.69)

(11.60)

Shares used in computing basic net loss per ADS

92,000,000

112,277,976

113,495,422

113,422

92,517,299

Shares used in computing diluted net loss per ADS

92,299

Note 1:

The conversion of Renminbi (RMB) into United States dollars (USD) is based on the noon buying rate of USD1.00=RMB6.7896 on the last trading day of September (September 30,2020)

as set forth in the H.10 statistical release of the U.S. Federal Reserve Board.

Note 2:

Share-based compensation in each category:

Cost of revenues

540

1,043

1,665

245

1,447

3,876

Sales and marketing expenses

(92)

808

2,071

305

688

3,790

Research and development expenses

1,020

3,016

5,418

798

1,061

11,577

General and administrative expenses

1,903

2,394

2,917

430

2,302

7,658

YOUDAO,INC.

UNAUDITED ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

(RMB and USD in thousands)

Three Months Ended

Nine Months Ended

September 30,

2019

2020

2020

2020

2019

2020

RMB

RMB

RMB

USD

RMB

RMB

Net revenues

Learning services and products

225,155

520,078

763,456

112,445

539,957

1,725,672

Online marketing services

120,047

Total net revenues

345,719

Cost of revenues

Learning services and products

163,225

267,942

391,037

57,593

400,035

885,756

Online marketing services

93,449

73,809

93,451

13,764

246,224

246,146

Total cost of revenues

256,674

341,751

484,488

71,357

646,259

1,902

Gross margin

Learning services and products

27.5%

48.5%

48.8%

48.8%

25.9%

48.7%

Online marketing services

22.6%

28.5%

29.5%

29.5%

30.5%

26.5%

Total gross margin

25.8%

45.2%

45.9%

45.9%

27.7%

45.1%

YOUDAO,INC.

UNAUDITED RECONCILIATION OF GAAP AND NON-GAAP RESULTS

(RMB and USD in thousands,except per ADS data)

Three Months Ended

Nine Months Ended

September 30,

2019

2020

2020

2020

2019

2020

RMB

RMB

RMB

USD

RMB

RMB

Net revenues of online courses

163,389

394,596

567,044

83,517

391,622

1,317,440

Add: value-added tax

16,468

38,687

54,083

7,966

33,551

114,118

Add: ending deferred revenue

296,693

658,052

992,393

146,164

296,693

992,393

Less: beginning deferred revenue

(185,622)

(549,317)

(658,052)

(96,921)

(129,144)

(407,861)

Non-GAAP gross billings of online courses

290,928

542,018

955,468

140,726

592,722

2,016,090

Net revenues of Youdao Premium Courses

116,529

332,202

496,508

73,128

307,818

1,130,235

Add: value-added tax

12,148

33,044

49,643

7,312

26,510

100,779

Add: ending deferred revenue

243,128

562,643

893,517

131,601

243,128

893,517

Less: beginning deferred revenue

(157,184)

(470,668)

(562,643)

(82,868)

(109,105)

(344,111)

Non-GAAP gross billings of Youdao Premium Courses

214,621

457,221

877,025

129,173

468,351

1,780,420

Net loss attributable to ordinary shareholders of the Company

(242,035)

Add: share-based compensation

3,371

7,261

12,071

1,778

5,498

26,901

Non-GAAP net loss attributable to ordinary shareholders of the

Company

(238,812)

(250,545)

(865,734)

(127,509)

(426,216)

(1,278,134)

Non-GAAP basic net loss per ADS

(2.60)

(2.23)

(7.63)

(1.12)

(4.63)

(11.36)

Non-GAAP diluted net loss per ADS

(2.60)

(2.23)

(7.63)

(1.12)

(4.63)

(11.36)

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