Alteryx (AYX), a data analytics platform company, reported its fourth-quarter and full-year 2018 results on Wednesday, with sales increasing in the quarter by 57% to $60.5 million. While sales climbed, the company reported a non-GAAP net loss of $500,000, which is down from non-GAAP net income of $1.4 million in the year-ago quarter.
Alteryx results: The raw numbers
| Metric | Q4 2018 | Q4 2017 | YoY Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $60.5 million | $38.6 million | 57% |
| GAAP net income (loss) | ($7.1 million) | ($1.5 million) | N/A |
| GAAP earnings per share (loss) | ($0.12) | ($0.03) | N/A |
Data source: Alteryx. YoY=year-over-year.
What happened with Alteryx this quarter?
- Alteryx changed its accounting standards in 2018 from the previous ASC 605 standard to the new ASC 606 standard. The figures in the table above are based on the old standard, for direct year-over-year comparison's sake.
- Based on the company's new ASC 606 standard, revenue in the fourth quarter was $89.2 million, GAAP net income was $16.5 million, and GAAP earnings per diluted share were $0.25.
- GAAP operating income in the fourth quarter was $21.1 million, based on ASC 606.
- The company's full-year revenue under the new ASC 606 standard was $253.6 million.
- Alteryx ended the fourth quarter with 4,696 customers, up 38% from the year-ago quarter.
- The company added 381 net new customers in the quarter, versus 338 net new additions in the fourth quarter of 2017.
- Fourth-quarter billings were up 65% year over year to $116 million.
- International revenue was up 92% year over year to $18 million.
- The company ended the quarter with cash, cash equivalents, and investments of $426.2 million, compared with $194.1 million at the end of 2017.
What management had to say
CEO Dean Stoecker said in a company press release that the fourth quarter was "a strong finish to an amazing year" and noted on the earnings conference call that the company set many records in the fourth quarter. Stoecker was referring to Alteryx's 57% year-over-year revenue increase and 65% jump in billings.
Management spent some time trying to put the recent accounting change into perspective as well. Under the old ASC 605 accounting standard, revenue was recognized based on the term of a subscription, which usually ranged from one to three years.
But CFO Kevin Rubin said on the call: "With the adoption of ASC 606, we will now recognize a portion of our revenue up front. And the remainder will be recognized over the subscription term."
That means that under ASC 606, revenue recognized in the quarter when a deal is booked will be higher that previously reported under ASC 605.
Stoecker emphasized that -- even with the transition to ASC 606 -- nothing has fundamentally changed with Alteryx's business:
Our playbooks don't change. Our sales motions don't change. Our contracting vehicles don't change. So, you can expect the same kinds of performance out of us in the future.
Check out all our earnings call transcripts.
Looking ahead
Alteryx management said the company's first-quarter 2019 revenue guidance is in the range of $69 million to $72 million, which would be a year-over-year increase of 40% at the midpoint. Meanwhile, the company's non-GAAP net loss for the quarter is expected to be in the range of $0.08 to $0.13.
Management said that Alteryx's sales for the full year would be between $345 million and $350 million, which would be a 37% jump from the previous year's revenue, at the midpoint of guidance.
Rubin added on the call that, "In 2019 and beyond, we expect to increase investments to drive our strong growth as we build a company for scale."
