Xiaomi on Tuesday reported a 27% jump in December-quarter revenue, its fourth consecutive quarter of growth, in spite a weak outlook for the global smartphone sector.

Sales in the fourth quarter jumped to 56.5 billion yuan (about $8.0 billion) from 44.42 bilion yuan in the same quarter a year earlier.

In 2019, Xiaomi said it achieved solid growth across all business segments. The Group’s total revenue exceeded RMB200 billion for the first time, reaching RMB205.8 billion, up 17.7% year-on-year (YoY), representing a 9-year CAGR of 112%. Adjusted net profit was RMB11.5 billion, up 34.8% YoY.

2019 Financial Highlights

• Total revenue was approximately RMB205.84 billion, up 17.7% YoY beat market consensus;
• Gross profit was approximately RMB28.55 billion, up 28.7% YoY;
• Non-IFRS adjusted net profit was RMB11.53 billion, up 34.8% YoY, beat market consensus;
• Earnings per share were RMB0.0423;
• The aggregate amount of cash resources was RMB66 billion.

4Q2019 Financial Highlights

• Total revenue at historical high of approximately RMB56.47 billion, up 27.1% YoY, the best performing quarter of the year;
• Gross profit was approximately RMB7.84 billion, up 38.5% YoY;
• Non-IFRS adjusted net profit was RMB2.34 billion, up 26.5% YoY.

Xiaomi Founder, Chairman and CEO Mr. Lei Jun said, “Despite headwinds from the Sino-US trade war and global economic downturn, Xiaomi stood out in 2019 with a commendable set of results as our revenue exceeded RMB200 billion for the first time. We also celebrated several key milestones, ranging from the successful launch of our dual-brand strategy as Xiaomi and Redmi are spun-off and independently operated, the affirmation of ‘5G+AIoT’ as our strategic roadmap, to our inaugural entries into the prestigious ranks of the Fortune Global 500 and BrandZ’s Top 100 Most Valuable Global Brands.”

“While the entire world is still under the dark shadows of COVID-19, we have maintained our keen focus on efficiency to tide over this economic ‘black swan’ with everyone. At Xiaomi, we firmly believe that our long-term business success is underpinned by technological innovations, and to that effect, we plan to invest RMB50.0 billion in the next five years, as we relentlessly focus on technological innovation and user experience to grow our loyal Mi Fan base. Overall, we remain committed to using technology to connect and improve lives everywhere in future.”

Smartphone Business Seized 5G Market Share

In 2019, Xiaomi’s revenue of the smartphones segment reached RMB122.1 billion, up 7.3% year-over-year. In the fourth quarter of 2019, revenue of the smartphones segment was RMB30.8 billion, an increase of 22.8% year-over-year. For 2019, Xiaomi shipped 124.6 million units of smartphones while in the fourth quarter, shipments were approximately 32.6 million, up 30.5% year-over-year. According to Canalys, for the fourth quarter of 2019, Xiaomi achieved the highest year-over-year smartphone shipments growth among the top five smartphone companies.

China’s No. 2 smartphone maker said that smartphone sales rebounded quickly in late March, underpinning resilient consumer demand. And its production capacity is already back up to between 80% and 90% normal levels. It warned however that the full impact of the pandemic on its international sales won’t emerge till the second quarter.

IoT Business

2019 is the first year for the Group’s implementation of its “Smartphone + AIoT” dual engine strategy. In 2019, Xiaomi’s revenue of the IoT and lifestyle products segment was RMB62.1 billion, an increase of 41.7% year-over-year and accounted for 30% of the total revenue from 25% in 2018. In the fourth quarter of 2019, revenue was RMB19.5 billion, up 30.5% year-over-year.

In 2019, the annual Xiaomi smart TVs shipments in mainland China exceeded 10 million units. The global TV shipments reached 12.8 million units, up 51.9% year-over-year. According to AVC, Xiaomi TV shipments ranked first in mainland China and fifth globally in 2019. Xiaomi also ranked first in India in terms of smart TV shipments for seven consecutive quarters as of the fourth quarter of 2019, according to IDC.

As of December 31, 2019, the number of connected IoT devices (excluding smartphones and laptops) on our IoT platform reached 234.8 million units, an increase of 55.6% year-over-year. Xiaomi AI assistant had over 60.4 million MAU in December 2019, an increase of 55.7% year-over-year. In December 2019, MAU of MIUI increased by 27.9% year-over-year to 309.6 million.

In 2019, Xiaomi’s revenue from overseas markets was RMB91.2 billion, up 30.4% year-over-year. In the fourth quarter of 2019, overseas revenue grew 40.7% year-over-year to RMB26.4 billion, accounting for 46.8% of total revenue. Currently, Xiaomi products are present in more than 90 countries and regions around the world.

In the fourth quarter of 2019, Xiaomi was the largest smartphone brand in India by shipments for ten consecutive quarter, capturing a market share of approximately 28.7%, according to IDC.

Internet Services Contributing Further to the Group’s Revenue

In 2019, Xiaomi’s revenue from Internet Service reached 19.8 billion, up 24.4% year-over-year. For the fourth quarter, revenue was RMB5.7 billion, up 41.1% year-over-year. In December 2019, the global monthly active users(“MAU”) of MIUI increased by 27.9% year-over-year to 309.6 million with mainland China’s MAU of MIUI standing at 109 million.