Roblox Retools User Engagement and Sees 21% Jump in Active Users

Roblox, the virtual world gaming platform, reported a record 79.5 million average daily active users (DAUs), representing a 21% increase from the previous year, the company said in its second-quarter earnings report released Thursday (Aug. 1).

“Our strong Q2 growth across all core metrics is driven by diverse and high-quality content,” David Baszucki, founder and CEO of Roblox, said in a Thursday (Aug. 1) release announcing the company’s second-quarter 2024 financial results. “Our platform continues to attract users of all ages from across the globe.”

It also said hours engaged grew 24%, to 17.4 billion. Revenue soared 31% year-over-year, to $893.5 million, and bookings rose 22%, to $955.2 million, surpassing guidance for both metrics.

Despite these successes, Roblox also reported a net loss attributable to common stockholders of $205.9 million.

Bookings, a revenue metric favored by video game analysts, reached $955.2 million, marking a 22% increase from the previous year and surpassing the consensus estimate of $898 million. For the third quarter, company officials expect bookings to range between $1 billion and $1.025 billion, compared to the analysts’ forecast of $967 million. Third-quarter revenue guidance is between $860 million and $885 million.

In the gaming segment, “Dress to Impress” emerged as a standout title, doubling its DAUs from Q1 to Q2 and gaining popularity on TikTok across all age groups. “A Dusty Trip,” a game released in March, has quickly attracted millions of DAUs.

Additionally, “FIFA World” saw a major update on June 1, introducing a new tycoon-style game, which has boosted total visits to over 22 million and increased users aged 18 and up by 20% in the past 90 days. In the advertising and shopping domain, the new video ads product continues to show significant growth and progress.

In response to growth rate declines in the first quarter, Roblox implemented several measures, including platform events, enhancements to its AI-driven discovery algorithm and improvements to the virtual economy.

“These efforts had a positive impact, with Daily Active Users (DAUs), Hours Engaged, and Bookings in the U.S. and Canada growing at or above 20% year-over-year,” according to the shareholder letter.

CFO Michael Guthrie applauded the financial health of the company.

“The combination of strong topline growth, fixed cost discipline and reduced capital expenditures allowed us to deliver significantly more cash flow in Q2 2024 than in Q2 2023,” he said.

Baszucki also announced that Guthrie plans to step aside as CFO to pursue other interests, but Guthrie will remain with Roblox until a new CFO is hired and through the transition period. Guthrie joined the company in 2018 and has made an indelible impact.

“He helped us go public, helped investors, employees, and board members and showed them how the business works,” Baszucki said. “The team Mike built is absolutely amazing. It will be fun to still keep working together and we’re thankful for you and have a little more time to work together. We’re looking for another amazing CFO. Mike’s been amazing and we’re going together find another amazing one.”

Guthrie said he’s thoroughly enjoyed the past six-plus years at Roblox. “I feel as head of finance, I like the financial position the company is in, with margins expanding and the balance sheet in pristine condition. I’ve had the good fortune of having been at the company through so much growth.”

Roblox’s second-quarter results reflect progress in its four growth areas: expanding internationally, catering to all ages, broadening platform use and enhancing its economy. Company officials see substantial potential in the gaming industry for increased market share, aiming to grow DAUs, engagement hours and bookings. Roblox’s unique value proposition includes features like personalized avatars and immersive 3D communication, which distinguish it from traditional gaming experiences.

“We believe our UGC [user-generated creations] approach combined with several key differentiators like personalized expressive avatars, vibrant social graph, and immersive 3D communication provide a unique value proposition to make traditional gaming experiences more social and support new experiences unique to our platform,” the shareholder letter said. “At our upcoming Roblox Developer Conference in September, we will share more about new features we are announcing to heighten these key differentiators and accelerate the future.”