Uxin Ltd (UXIN) 2021 Q3 法說會逐字稿

Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for standing by, and welcome to Uxin's earnings conference call for the quarter ended December 31, 2020. (Operator Instructions)

Today's conference call is being recorded. If you have any objections, you may disconnect at this time.

I would now like to turn the call over to your host for today's conference call, Eric Yuan. Please go ahead, sir.

Thank you, Operator. Hello, everyone. Welcome to Uxin's earnings conference call for the quarter ended December 2020. On the call today are D.K., Founder and CEO; and John Lin, CFO. D.K. will review business operations and company highlights, followed by John, who will discuss financials and guidance. They will both be available to answer your questions during the Q&A session.

Before we start, I would like to remind you that this call may contain forward-looking statements made under the safe harbor provisions of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements are based on management's current knowledge and assumptions about future events that involve known or unknown risks and uncertainties which could cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements. Uxin does not undertake any obligations to update any forward-looking statements, except as required under the applicable law. For more information about potential risks and uncertainties, please refer to our filings with the SEC.

With that, I will now turn the call over to our CEO, D.K. Please go ahead, sir.

Thank you, Eric. Hello, everyone. Thank you for joining our earnings conference call today.

We are pleased to report that we have completed our strategic transformation into an inventory-owning model in the quarter ended December 31, 2020. The majority of online used car transactions in December was sold from our own inventory. This successful transaction reflects our commitment and ongoing efforts to better serve our customers with our online products and services. Operating as a nationwide online used car dealer with our own inventory, we now have much stronger control and management over the entire services and supply chain, from the selection and quality of our used car inventory to online car consulting for buyers and customer services and our own delivery and after-sales services nationwide.

To strengthen our ability to provide a used car of high quality and value for money, we are building our own inspection and reconditioning center, or IRC, where we can refurbish selected inventory to a like-new condition. Our first IRC in Xi'an has been in operation since March 2021. Through our new network of IRCs, we can facilitate in-house refurbishing for better control of quality and consistency so that the used car will meet our own quality excellence standards. We're also able to better serve the markets within the service radius of each IRC location.

Moreover, with these ongoing improvements to our product and services offerings, we have been closely monitoring our net promoter score, or NPS. We have seen our NPS increase to 42 during the reported quarter, up from 30 in the quarter ended September 30, 2020, and only 10 in the quarter ended June 30, 2020.

The significant improvement in NPS is the recognition by our customers of our value proposition, that we are providing even higher-quality value for money used car and the best-in-class online car purchasing services. It also gives us greater confidence that we have the right development strategy in place and are heading in the right direction with our online business.

The increase in NPS score has also strengthened our belief that our word-of-mouth referral strategy will provide a firm foundation for further development and will generate solid and sustainable long-term growth, reinforcing our brand and market position in China.

China used car market has huge growth potential, and the Chinese government continues to introduce preferential policies for the industry. The value-added tax on used car sales has been cut to 0.5%, from 2%, in May 2020. The General Office of the State Council has recently required all regions to remove restrictions on cross-region transactions and the title transfer of used cars.

The government has also published its blueprint for the digital documentation of used cars. Registration and other documentation will be completely digitized for online transmission and recognition. This will simplify the documentation process, reduce title transfer costs and increase efficiency of cross-region used car transactions. Digital documents will be in testing in designated regions in June, expanded to major cities in September and be adopted nationwide in first half of next year.

As a leading online used car dealer in China, Uxin believes these policies will create a more efficient and sustainable environment for the used car business in the long run. We will closely monitor government policies, improve vehicle quality and develop services to a higher level to contribute to the transformation of China's used car industry.

Last week, we entered into a strategic partnership with JD.com to launch our self-operated online store for used car transactions through JD's platform. The collaboration will provide customers with one-stop online used car purchasing solutions, including used car inspection, purchasing, insurance and after-sale services, and includes plans for joint development of data management, technology, inspection standards and an integrated supply chain in the used car business. We are committed to using big Data and internet technology to empower the used car industry in order to raise industry standard and the level of services. We believe cooperation with JD.com will offer our customers a higher quality and more reliable used car purchasing experience than exists in the market at present.

As a result, we are very pleased with the progress we have made this quarter. We are also encouraged by the recognition of our success by 2 well-established Asia funds, and we have entered into a binding term sheet for a potential investment of up to USD 300 million. These investors have expressed a strong belief in the potential of China used car market. They have acknowledged Uxin's leading market position, strong branding and capacity to provide high-quality cars and services to customers. We are glad that they also share the same respect for Uxin's business model, growth strategy and execution plans.

The financing is proceeding as expected. We will work closely with these investors to transform China used car industry and create long-term value for our customers.

With that, I'd like to turn the call over to our CFO to walk you through the financial results. John, please.

Thanks, D.K. Hello, everyone. Thanks for joining us today. I will walk you through the financial results for the quarter ended December 31, 2020.

Our online used car transaction volume was 2,307 units this quarter. The majority was sold from our own inventory. Since we have shifted to an inventory-owning model, our revenue recognition and the structure of costs and expenses are more in line with our industry peers. We believe this will facilitate the understanding of our business and financials.

Also, since we have settled the majority of our remaining guaranteed liabilities in July 2020, from this quarter the impact of the discontinued loan facilitation business on operating expenses has been minimized. As a result, our financial performance will better reflect our core business.

Moreover, during this quarter we improved overall operational efficiencies through strict cost management. We target to grow the business at a most efficient cost level. We believe our ongoing cost-saving efforts will be productive and benefit our financials in the coming quarters.

Now let me walk through the financial details for the quarter ended December 31, 2020, which is the third quarter of our Fiscal Year 2021. All numbers are in RMB unless otherwise stated.

Total revenues were CNY 323 million. This is recognized on a gross basis as a result of the transformation into the inventory-owning model. Our total 2C revenue was CNY 303 million, the majority of the revenue coming from our vehicle sales.

Gross margin was 2.9%, compared with negative 22.4% last quarter and 59.2% in the same period last year. Due to the adoption of the inventory-owning model, revenue recognition and the components of costs were significantly different from the corresponding period in 2019 and also the last quarter. However, we believe this is more comparable with our industry peers. With the transformation completed, we expect that gross margin will rise gradually in the coming quarters.

Total operating expenses were CNY 188 million, compared with CNY 318 million last quarter and CNY 862 million in the same period last year. Total operating expenses decreased mainly due to the strict -- our continuing actions in cost and expenses cutting and also the decrease in the loss related to guaranteed liabilities for historically facilitated loans.

To talk more about the cost and expenses, we also improved overall operational efficiencies through very strict cost management. As part of our strategy, we aim to grow our business at a most efficient level.

The marketing expenses decreased by around 50% year-over-year. Rent expenses and professional fees decreased by 72% compared with the corresponding period in 2019.

Due to the adoption of the inventory-owning model, salaries and the benefits for employees engaged in car sourcing, inspections, after-sale services have been reclassified as sales and marketing expenses; whereas before, such items were classified as cost of revenues. So overall speaking, the labor expenses of the total operating expenses this quarter may not be comparable with previous quarters. Overall speaking, cost and expenses, excluding severance pay, the labor cost decreased by 63% year-over-year and 9% quarter-over-quarter.

Looking ahead, we believe our ongoing efforts at cost and expense saving will be productive and benefit our financials in the long run.

The non-GAAP adjusted loss from continuing operations, excluding the impact of share-based compensation, was CNY 162 million for the 3 months ended December 31, 2020, compared with CNY 178 million last quarter and CNY 577 million in the same period last year.

The net loss was CNY 173 million for the 3 months ended December 31, 2020, compared with CNY 259 million last quarter and CNY 967 million in the same period last year.

About our cash position. As of December 31, 2020, we had cash and cash equivalents of CNY 288 million, compared with CNY 219 million as of September 30, 2020. Assuming the potential investment of up to USD 300 million is completed, our cash position will be significantly improved. We believe that this will help remove the going concerns on continuing operations. This investment is subject to the company's fulfillment of the terms in the binding term sheet.

That sums up our results for the 3 months ended December 31, 2020.

Moving to our guidance. The quarter ended March 31, 2021, was the traditional off-season in Chinese used car market due to the spring festival holiday. With the adoption of the inventory-owning model, we expect our total revenue to be in the range of RMB 190 million to RMB 200 million for the 3 months ended March 31, 2021. With continued focus on cost and expense management, gross margin is expected to increase to around 5%, and the non-GAAP adjusted loss from continuing operations is expected to be less than RMB 110 million. The forecast reflects our current and preliminary views on the market and also the operational conditions, which are subject to changes.

That concludes our prepared remarks. Thanks.

(Operator Instructions) Our first question comes from the line of Tom Hamilton, of Park Hill Capital.

Hi, everyone. Thanks for taking my question. We're happy to see the work you've been doing on your strategic transformation. Would you give us more color on what's happening with your IRC in Xi'an, your inspection and reconditioning center?

(foreign language)

(foreign language)

Thanks for the question. For our Xi'an IRC, we started to select its location and construct from December 2020 and put it into operation in the past March. The IRC covers an area of approximately 24,000 square meters, including an exhibition hall, a warehouse zone and a refurbish zone. Once completed, the IRC can hold over 1,000 vehicles, making it the largest flagship store of used car in northwestern China under a single brand. So currently, we have already stored hundreds of vehicles in the exhibition hall. The IRC is scheduled to officially open for business this May.

The Xi'an IRC represents a major breakthrough in our business development as a nationwide online used car dealer, allowing us to have much stronger control over the entire service and the supply chain, providing our customers with used cars of high quality and value for money as well as a full range of solutions.

(foreign language)

In terms of vehicle sourcing, our team is doing that job in about 40 cities across China, with only about 20% finally admitted to our in-house inventory. So every single vehicle in our inventory has to pass more than 300 tests during the inspection process. So leveraging our professional testing equipment and extensive inspection know-how, we effectively help customers choose cars of good quality.

Meanwhile, we also apply our in-house developed technologies to refurbish the vehicles to further enhance their quality before they go to market.

At the same time, our Xi'an IRC serves multiple functions, such as warehousing, inspection, refurbishment and vehicle demonstration. It also provides vehicle registration services, offering customers one-stop car purchasing experience. Local customers can come to our IRC and check out the car in person. They can also pick up the car on-site rather than wait for delivery.

Overall, the development of Xi'an IRC is in line with our prior expectation, and we believe it will positively contribute to the development of the used car market in northwestern China once it is officially launched.

Thank you.

Thank you. Ladies and gentlemen, that concludes the conference for today, and thank you for participating. You may now all disconnect.