BEIJING--(BUSINESS WIRE)--KE Holdings Inc. (�Beike� or the �Company�) (NYSE: BEKE), a leading integrated online and offline platform for housing transactions and services, today announced its unaudited financial results for the second quarter ended June 30, 2021.

Business Highlights for the Second Quarter of 2021

• Gross transaction value (GTV)¹ was RMB1,220.8 billion (US$189.1 billion), an increase of 22.2% year-over-year. GTV of existing home transactions was RMB652.0 billion (US$101.0 billion), an increase of 11.7% year-over-year. GTV of new home transactions was RMB498.3 billion (US$77.2 billion), an increase of 32.3% year-over-year. GTV of emerging and other services was RMB70.6 billion (US$10.9 billion), an increase of 80.5% year-over-year.
• Net revenues were RMB24.2 billion (US$3.7 billion), an increase of 20.0% year-over-year.
• Net income was RMB1,116 million (US$173 million). Adjusted net income² was RMB1,638 million (US$254 million).
• Number of stores was 52,868 as of June 30, 2021, a 25.1% increase from one year ago.
• Number of agents was 548,600 as of June 30, 2021, a 20.3% increase from one year ago.
• Mobile monthly active users (MAU)³averaged 52.1 million, an increase of 33.5% year-over-year.

�We are pleased with our strong performance in the second quarter, backed by our commitment to contribute to a better industry and a better society,� said Mr. Stanley Yongdong Peng, Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer of Beike. �Guided by our dedication to protect our customers� rights and interests while fulfilling their expectations for joyful living, Beike delivered solid results while adhering to the national policy that 'housing is for living in, not for speculation', as evidenced by the total GTV of RMB2.29 trillion in the first half of 2021, up 72.3% year-over-year.�

�During the second quarter, we continued to upgrade our Agent Specialization Strategy and expand our professional contract service centers to 287 locations to enhance efficiency and collaborations, resulting in GTV of existing home transaction services of RMB652.0 billion, representing 11.7% growth year-over-year. GTV of new home transaction services rose by 32.3% year-over-year, reaching RMB498.3 billion, and 42.8% of the GTV growth derived from connected stores and other sales channels as we further enriched our new home related online content and made steady progress with our �New Home Business Conduct Improvement Plan�. At the same time, we sustained our rapid growth momentum in emerging services during the second quarter. We announced our proposed acquisition of Shengdu to accelerate our home renovation business development, and launched Home SaaS system 1.0 to further enhance the end-to-end standardization and digitalization of our home renovation services.�

�Looking ahead, we plan to leverage our quality, talent and technological resources to stimulate inspirations and explore growth and development opportunities, which has been key to our success during each of the past market corrections. In the future, housing is expected to be an increasingly important field of people�s livelihood, as we believe there will always be the consumers� long-term demand for better living. Given the relative inefficiencies that persist in the housing industry, with low user satisfaction, and problems such as lack of standardization, digitalization, and internet penetration, we still see tremendous opportunities for value creation and increasing need for our innovative solutions. We will always look inward for source of strength and outward for value creation opportunities, with both perseverance and optimism for a bright future. With this in mind, we will continue to grow our business operations with a focus on long-term �better living� by promoting our one-stop quality home services for the 300 million households in China,� concluded Mr. Peng.

Mr. Tao Xu, Executive Director and Chief Financial Officer of Beike, further commented, �Driven by the strong growth in GTV of both existing home and new home transaction services, we achieved a 20.0% year-over-year increase in net revenues to RMB24.2 billion in the second quarter, beating both the high end of our guidance and the street consensus. During the second quarter, a slew of city-specific policies and severe market-cooling measures were rolled out in China. Those measures help promote a stable and healthy development of real estate market in the long run, but may bring about short-term market uncertainties. Despite this challenge, we firmly uphold those policies and measures, and support government to crack down on housing speculation in certain overheated cities to stabilize the market. We believe that the longing for joyful living and better housing creates firm demand from the consumers. Looking into the second half of this year, we will continue to invest in the Company�s infrastructure and emerging services. And we strongly believe in what Lao Zuo mentioned in our prospectus - Marching through noises and market volatility, we believe it is our fundamental value, rather than external circumstances, that is the key to the continuing success of Beike. Compared to our near-term financial performance, we devote more efforts in developing and investing in our long-term capabilities, even though it might take time to achieve financial returns on these investments. In fact, the longer it takes and the more difficult it is, the more excited we become.�

Second Quarter 2021 Financial Results

Net Revenues

Net revenues increased by 20.0% to RMB24.2 billion (US$3.7 billion) in the second quarter of 2021 from RMB20.1 billion in the same period of 2020. The increase was driven by the total GTV growth of 22.2% to RMB1,220.8 billion (US$189.1 billion) in the second quarter of 2021 from RMB999.2 billion in the same period of 2020. For the first half of 2021, net revenues increased by 64.6% to RMB44.9 billion (US$7.0 billion) from RMB27.3 billion in the first half of 2020. The increase was driven by the total GTV growth of 72.3% to RMB2,290.4 billion (US$354.7 billion) in the first half of 2021 from RMB1,329.1 billion in the first half of 2020.

• Net revenues from existing home transaction services increased by 4.9% to RMB9.6 billion (US$1.5 billion) in the second quarter of 2021 from RMB9.2 billion in the same period of 2020, primarily attributable to a 11.7% increase in GTV of existing home transactions to RMB652.0 billion (US$101.0 billion) in the second quarter of 2021 from RMB583.5 billion in the same period of 2020. For the first half of 2021, net revenues from existing home transaction services increased by 57.9% to RMB19.8 billion (US$3.1 billion) from RMB12.6 billion in the first half of 2020, driven by a 70.1% increase in GTV of existing home transactions to RMB1,325.4 billion (US$205.3 billion) in the first half of 2021 from RMB779.2 billion in the first half of 2020.

  Among that, (i) the revenues derived from platform service, franchise service and other value-added services, which are mostly charged to connected stores and agents on the Company�s platform, increased by 29.1% to RMB1.1 billion (US$0.2 billion) in the second quarter of 2021 from RMB0.9 billion in the same period of 2020, primarily due to the increased GTV of existing home transactions served by connected agents on the Company�s platform by 25.6% to RMB342.5 billion (US$53.0 billion) in the second quarter of 2021 from RMB272.7 billion in the same period of 2020, and a moderate increase in existing home transaction commission rate charged by connected stores;

  (ii) commission revenue increased by 2.4% to RMB8.5 billion (US$1.3 billion) in the second quarter of 2021 from RMB8.3 billion in the same period of 2020, driven by a moderate increase in existing home transaction services commission rate charged by Lianjia stores, while GTV of existing home transactions served by Lianjia stores was RMB309.5 billion (US$47.9 billion) in the second quarter of 2021, compared to RMB310.9 billion in the same period of 2020 as a meaningful portion of transactions were concentrated in the second quarter of 2020 under the impact of COVID-19 outbreak.

• Net revenues from new home transaction services increased by 31.9% to RMB13.9 billion (US$2.2 billion) in the second quarter of 2021 from RMB10.5 billion in the same period of 2020, primarily attributable to an increase of 32.3% in GTV of new home transactions to RMB498.3 billion (US$77.2 billion) in the second quarter of 2021 from RMB376.6 billion in the same period of 2020. The GTV of new home transaction services completed on Beike platform through connected agents and other sales channels increased by 42.8% to RMB414.5 billion (US$64.2 billion) from RMB290.3 billion in the same period of 2020, while the GTV of new home transactions served by Lianjia brand was RMB83.8 billion (US$13.0 billion) in the second quarter of 2021, compared to RMB86.3 billion in the same period of 2020. For the first half of 2021, net revenues from new home transaction services increased by 70.4% to RMB23.8 billion (US$3.7 billion) from RMB14.0 billion in the first half of 2020, driven by the increased GTV of new home transactions by 70.7% to RMB841.7 billion (US$130.4 billion) in the first half of 2021 from RMB493.1 billion in the first half of 2020.

• Net revenues from emerging and other services increased by 50.6% to RMB0.7 billion (US$0.1 billion) in the second quarter of 2021 from RMB0.4 billion in the same period of 2020. The increase was primarily attributable to the increase of penetration level in the Company�s financial services around the housing transaction services, and an increased number of home renovation units completed through the Company�s platform. For the first half of 2021, net revenues from emerging and other services increased by 68.9% to RMB1.2 billion (US$0.2 billion) from RMB0.7 billion in the same period of 2020.

Cost of Revenues

Total cost of revenues increased by 38.6% to RMB18.8 billion (US$2.9 billion) in the second quarter of 2021 from RMB13.6 billion in the same period of 2020.

• Commission - split. The Company�s cost of revenues for commissions to connected agents and other sales channels increased by 51.4% to RMB9.4 billion (US$1.5 billion) in the second quarter of 2021 from RMB6.2 billion in the same period of 2020. The increase was primarily due to the incremental increase in the number of new home transactions completed through connected agents and other sales channels.

• Commission and compensation - internal. The Company�s cost of revenues for internal commission and compensation increased by 19.9% to RMB7.6 billion (US$1.2 billion) in the second quarter of 2021 from RMB6.4 billion in the same period of 2020. The increase was primarily due to the increase in the number of new home transactions completed through dedicated agents with the expertise on new home transaction services, and the increase of fixed personnel costs in line with the increase in the number of Lianjia agents.

• Cost related to stores. The Company�s cost related to stores increased by 31.2% to RMB0.9 billion (US$0.1 billion) in the second quarter of 2021 compared to RMB0.7 billion in the same period of 2020, mainly due to an increase in the number of stores for Lianjia brand, and the incremental rise in rental fees of contract service centers opened in 2021.

• Other costs. The Company�s other costs increased by 193.6% to RMB0.8 billion (US$0.1 billion) in the second quarter of 2021 compared to RMB0.3 billion in the same period of 2020, mainly due to an increase in share-based compensation expenses, and an increase in training costs along with the increase of offline training activities compared to the same period of 2020 under the impact of COVID-19 outbreak.

Gross Profit

Gross profit was RMB5.3 billion (US$0.8 billion) in the second quarter of 2021, compared to RMB6.6 billion in the same period of 2020. Gross margin was 22.1% in the second quarter of 2021, compared to 32.5% in the same period of 2020. The decrease in gross margin was mainly because: 1) market in the second quarter of 2021 had more ordinary performance compared to the same period of 2020, as a significant portion of transactions, especially existing home transactions, shifted from the first quarter to the second quarter of 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, resulting in a high base of gross margin; 2) in the second quarter of 2021, existing home sales market was affected by a series of market-cooling measures that led to a relatively lower contribution from existing home transactions revenues to total net revenues, resulting in a lower total contribution margin compared to the same period of 2020; and 3) the proportion of new home transactions completed by connected agents and other sales channels increased in the second quarter of 2021 compared to the same period of 2020, resulting in a lower new home contribution margin in the second quarter of 2021. For the first half of 2021, gross profit increased by 43.9% to RMB10.1 billion (US$1.6 billion) from RMB7.1 billion in the first half of 2020.

Income (Loss) from Operations

Total operating expenses were RMB4.2 billion (US$0.7 billion) in the second quarter of 2021, compared to RMB3.3 billion in the same period of 2020.

• General and administrative expenses were RMB2,202 million (US$341 million) in the second quarter of 2021, compared to RMB1,951 million in the same period of 2020, mainly due to an increase in share-based compensation expenses.

• Sales and marketing expenses were RMB1,241 million (US$192 million) in the second quarter of 2021, compared to RMB788 million in the same period of 2020, mainly due to the increase of the online and offline advertisement and branding campaigns as well as the increase of headcount in business development personnel.

• Research and development expenses were RMB775 million (US$120 million) in the second quarter of 2021, compared to RMB524 million in the same period of 2020, mainly due to the increase of headcount in experienced research and development personnel and increased share-based compensation expenses.

Income from operations was RMB1,116 million (US$173 million) in the second quarter of 2021, compared to RMB3,287 million in the same period of 2020. Operating margin was 4.6% in the second quarter of 2021, compared to 16.3% in the same period of 2020, primarily due to a relatively higher gross profit margin in the second quarter of 2020, and less operating expenses incurred in the second quarter of 2020 due to travel and offline events restrictions. For the first half of 2021, income from operations increased by 28.6% to RMB2,129 million (US$330 million) from RMB1,656 million in the first half of 2020.

Adjusted income from operations⁴ was RMB1,669 million (US$258 million) in the second quarter of 2021, compared to RMB3,443 million in the same period of 2020. Adjusted operating margin⁵ was 6.9% in the second quarter of 2021, compared to 17.1% in the same period of 2020. Adjusted EBITDA⁶ was RMB2,555 million (US$396 million) in the second quarter of 2021, compared to RMB3,792 million in the same period of 2020. For the first half of 2021, adjusted income from operations increased by 64.6% to RMB3,233 million (US$501 million) from RMB1,965 million in the first half of 2020.

Net Income (Loss)

Net income was RMB1,116 million (US$173 million) in the second quarter of 2021, compared to RMB2,839 million in the same period of 2020. For the first half of 2021, net income increased by 35.3% to RMB2,174 million (US$337 million) from RMB1,607 million in the same period of 2020.

Adjusted net income was RMB1,638 million (US$254 million) in the second quarter of 2021, compared to RMB2,951 million in the same period of 2020. For the first half of 2021, adjusted net income increased by 68.8% to RMB3,140 million (US$486 million) from RMB1,861 million in the same period of 2020.

Net Income (Loss) attributable to KE Holdings Inc.�s ordinary shareholders

Net income attributable to KE Holdings Inc.�s ordinary shareholders increased by 5.6% to RMB1,112 million (US$172 million) in the second quarter of 2021 from RMB1,053 million in the same period of 2020. For the first half of 2021, net income attributable to KE Holdings Inc.�s ordinary shareholders increased by 2,106.0% to RMB2,170 million (US$336 million) from RMB98 million in the first half of 2020.

Adjusted net income attributable to KE Holdings Inc.⁷ was RMB1,635 million (US$253 million) in the second quarter of 2021, compared to RMB2,948 million in the same period of 2020. For the first half of 2021, adjusted net income attributable to KE Holdings Inc. increased by 68.7% to RMB3,136 million (US$486 million) from RMB1,860 million in the first half of 2020.

Net Income (Loss) per ADS

Diluted net income per ADS attributable to KE Holdings Inc.�s ordinary shareholders⁸ was RMB0.93 (US$0.14) in the second quarter of 2021, compared to RMB2.12 in the same period of 2020.

Adjusted diluted net income per ADS attributable to KE Holdings Inc.�s ordinary shareholders⁹ was RMB1.37 (US$0.21) in the second quarter of 2021, compared to RMB2.23 in the same period of 2020.

Cash, Cash Equivalents, Restricted Cash and Short-Term Investments

As of June 30, 2021, the combined balance of the Company�s cash, cash equivalents, restricted cash and short-term investments amounted to RMB59.2 billion (US$9.2 billion).

Business Outlook

For the third quarter of 2021, the Company expects total net revenues to be between RMB14.5 billion (US$2.2 billion) and RMB15.5 billion (US$2.4 billion), representing a decrease of approximately 24.6% to 29.4% from the same quarter of 2020. This forecast considers the potential impact of the recent real estate related policies and measures, and the Company�s current and preliminary view on the business situation and market condition, which is subject to change.

Conference Call Information

The Company will hold a conference call on 9:00 PM U.S. Eastern Time on Wednesday, August 11, 2021 (9:00 AM Beijing/Hong Kong Time on Thursday, August 12, 2021) to discuss the financial results. Details for the conference call are as follows:

Event Title: Beike�s Second Quarter 2021 Earnings Conference Call

Conference ID: 1752298

All participants must use the link provided below to complete the online registration process in advance of the conference call. Upon registering, each participant will receive a set of participant dial-in numbers, the Direct Event pass code, and a unique registrant ID by email.

PRE-REGISTER LINK:

http://apac.directeventreg.com/registration/event/1752298

A live and archived webcast of the conference call will also be available at the Company�s investor relations website at http://investors.ke.com/.

The replay will be accessible through August 19, 2021, by dialing the following numbers:

Exchange Rate

This announcement contains translations of certain RMB amounts into U.S. dollars ("US$") at specified rates solely for the convenience of the reader. Unless otherwise stated, all translations from RMB to US$ were made at the rate of RMB6.4566 to US$1.00, the noon buying rate in effect on June 30, 2021, in the H.10 statistical release of the Federal Reserve Board. The Company makes no representation that the RMB or US$ amounts referred could be converted into US$ or RMB, as the case may be, at any particular rate or at all. For analytical presentation, all percentages are calculated using the numbers presented in the financial statements contained in this earnings release.

Non-GAAP Financial Measures

The Company uses adjusted income (loss) from operations, adjusted net income (loss), adjusted net income (loss) attributable to KE Holdings Inc., adjusted operating margin, adjusted EBITDA and adjusted net income (loss) per ADS attributable to KE Holdings Inc.�s ordinary shareholders, each a non-GAAP financial measure, in evaluating its operating results and for financial and operational decision-making purposes. Beike believes that these non-GAAP financial measures help identify underlying trends in the Company's business that could otherwise be distorted by the effect of certain expenses that the Company includes in its net income (loss). Beike also believes that these non-GAAP financial measures provide useful information about its results of operations, enhance the overall understanding of its past performance and future prospects and allow for greater visibility with respect to key metrics used by its management in its financial and operational decision-making. A limitation of using these non-GAAP financial measures is that these non-GAAP financial measures exclude share-based compensation expenses that have been, and will continue to be for the foreseeable future, a significant recurring expense in the Company�s business.

The presentation of these non-GAAP financial measures should not be considered in isolation or construed as an alternative to gross profit, net income (loss) or any other measure of performance or as an indicator of its operating performance. Investors are encouraged to review these non-GAAP financial measures and the reconciliation to the most directly comparable GAAP measures. The non-GAAP financial measures presented here may not be comparable to similarly titled measures presented by other companies. Other companies may calculate similarly titled measures differently, limiting their usefulness as comparative measures to the Company�s data. Beike encourages investors and others to review its financial information in its entirety and not rely on a single financial measure. Adjusted income (loss) from operations is defined as income (loss) from operations, excluding (i) share-based compensation expenses, and (ii) amortization of intangible assets resulting from acquisitions and business cooperation agreement. Adjusted operating margin is defined as adjusted income (loss) from operations as a percentage of net revenues. Adjusted net income (loss) is defined as net income (loss), excluding (i) share-based compensation expenses, (ii) amortization of intangible assets resulting from acquisitions and business cooperation agreement, (iii) changes in fair value from long term investments, loan receivables measured at fair value and contingent consideration, and (iv) tax effects of the above non-GAAP adjustments. Adjusted net income (loss) attributable to KE Holdings Inc. is defined as net income (loss) attributable to KE Holdings Inc., excluding (i) share-based compensation expenses, (ii) amortization of intangible assets resulting from acquisitions and business cooperation agreement, (iii) changes in fair value from long term investments, loan receivables measured at fair value and contingent consideration, (iv) tax effects of the above non-GAAP adjustments, and (v) effects of non-GAAP adjustments on net income (loss) attributable to non-controlling interests shareholders. Adjusted EBITDA is defined as net income (loss), excluding (i) interest income, net, (ii) income tax expense (benefit), (iii) depreciation of property and equipment, (iv) amortization of intangible assets, (v) share-based compensation expenses, and (vi) changes in fair value from long term investments, loan receivables measured at fair value and contingent consideration. Adjusted net income (loss) per ADS attributable to KE Holdings Inc.�s ordinary shareholders is defined as adjusted net income (loss) attributable to KE Holdings Inc.�s ordinary shareholders divided by weighted average number of ADS outstanding during the periods used in calculating adjusted net income (loss) per ADS, basic and diluted.

Contacts

For investor and media inquiries, please contact:

In China:

KE Holdings Inc.

Investor Relations

Matthew Zhao

Siting Li

E-mail: [email protected]

The Piacente Group, Inc.

Ross Warner

Tel: +86-10-6508-0677

E-mail: [email protected]

In the United States:

The Piacente Group, Inc.

Brandi Piacente

Tel: +1-212-481-2050

E-mail: [email protected]

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