Chinese career website company 51job.com's (JOBS) unaudited financial results for the fourth quarter of 2005 and for the year ended December 31, 2005 show the company either met or exceeded guidance on key fundamentals.
Total revenues increased 20.2% over Q4 2004 to CNY144.7 million, in line with the company's guidance range of CNY140 to CNY150 million. Gross margin reached 54.4% compared with 48.8% in Q4 2004.
Fully diluted earnings per common share were CNY0.34, exceeding the company's expectations of CNY0.20 to CNY0.30.
Print advertising revenues for the fourth quarter of 2005 increased 6.8% to CNY79.0 million compared with CNY73.9 million for the same quarter in 2004 due primarily to a higher number of recruitment advertisements placed in 51job Weekly.
The estimated number of print advertising pages generated in the fourth quarter of 2005 increased to 2,471 compared with 2,346 pages in the same quarter in 2004.
Online recruitment services revenues for the fourth quarter of 2005 were CNY44.4 million, representing a 49.8% growth from CNY29.6 million for the same quarter last year. The increase was principally attributable to a larger number of unique employers using the company's online recruitment services, which increased to 34,081 in the fourth quarter of 2005 from 22,966 in the same period last year.
As of December 31, 2005, cash and cash equivalents were CNY830.6 million compared with CNY848.3 million at year-end 2004 and CNY874.3 million at September 30, 2005. The decrease in cash was primarily the result of installment payments made under the company's letter of intent related to the purchase of a new office complex and the execution of the company's share repurchase program.