Roblox announces robust Q2 2024 results amid CFO's resignation
Michael Guthrie, the Chief Financial Officer of Roblox, will resign from his role.
Having joined the company in 2018, Guthrie was instrumental in Roblox's public offering in 2021. He will remain in his position until a successor is chosen, after which he plans to take time for personal endeavors.
The numbers
For the quarter ending on June 30, 2024:
- Revenue reached $893.5 million, marking a 31% increase compared to the previous year.
- Bookings amounted to $955.2 million, up 22% year-on-year.
- Daily active users (DAUs) grew by 21% to 79.5 million.
- Engagement hours rose 24% to 17.4 billion.
The highlights
Despite an overall strong Q2 performance, the news of Guthrie's resignation caused a temporary 4% dip in Roblox's stock. The quarter outpaced expectations thanks to increased user participation, particularly from those aged 13 and above, which saw a 30% boost, and higher consumer expenditure.
Bookings surged 22% year-on-year to $955.2 million, prompting Roblox to adjust its annual bookings forecast to a range of $4.18 billion to $4.23 billion. For Q3, bookings are projected to be between $1 billion and $1.3 billion.
Guthrie noted, “The combination of strong topline growth, fixed cost discipline, and reduced capital expenditures allowed us to deliver significantly more cash flow in Q2 2024 than in Q2 2023."
He detailed further financials, saying, "Net cash and cash equivalents from operating activities amounted to $151.4 million in Q2 2024, a 433% increase from $28.4 million in Q2 2023. Free cash flow for the quarter was $111.6 million, a notable rise of $207.1 million compared to $(95.5) million in Q2 2023.”
David Baszucki, CEO of Roblox, remarked that the considerable growth in Q2 metrics was due to the broad and high-quality content on the platform. "As a user-generated content (UGC) platform, we back a large and committed creator community that flourishes continuously. Our unique Roblox content ecosystem keeps attracting users of all ages globally. We will keep investing in our core platform to offer our creators better and safer tools to reach more users," he added.
In related news, it was reported last week that Roblox had informed the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children of over 13,000 child exploitation incidents in 2023. Around 24 individuals were arrested for grooming and abusing victims on the widely-used social game platform in the United States.
