What happened
Shares of Roblox (RBLX 2.33%) soared by 42% on Tuesday after the popular video game development company delivered strong third-quarter numbers.
So what
Roblox's revenue surged by 102% year over year to $509.3 million. Meanwhile, the company's bookings -- a key metric that factors in deferred revenue and represents the dollar amount of virtual currency that users bought during the quarter -- jumped by 28% to $637.8 million.
This heady growth was driven by a 31% rise in average daily active users (DAUs) to 47.3 million, and a 28% increase in hours engaged to 11.2 billion.
"Engagement is our north star," CEO David Baszucki said in a press release. "We're very pleased that during the third quarter, people of all ages from across the globe chose to spend over 11 billion hours on Roblox."
Image source: Getty Images.
Still, Roblox is not yet profitable. Its net loss for the quarter came in at $74 million. However, the fast-growing company is already generating positive free cash flow, to the tune of $170.6 million.
Now what
Roblox's results were particularly impressive in light of the easing of coronavirus-related restrictions, which has largely allowed children to return to school and re-engage in more outdoor and group activities. "Growth in all of our core metrics -- DAUs, hours, and bookings -- displayed strong year-over-year growth despite lapping Covid-impacted periods and back-to-school seasonality," Chief Financial Officer Michael Guthrie said.
If these positive trends continue -- which appears likely -- Roblox's shareholders could be in store for even more gains ahead.
"It's clear that even as users revert back to pre-pandemic routines and behaviors, Roblox remains an important part of their day," the company said in a letter to investors.
