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Accel Group Was Awarded “Listed Enterprises of the Year 2021” by Bloomberg Businessweek/Chinese Edition

HONG KONG SAR – Media OutReach – 2 December 2021 – Accel Group Holdings Limited (Stock code: 1283.HK, “Accel Group” or the “Group”) is pleased to announce that, the Group has performed well in the E & M engineering industry and has awarded “Listed Enterprises of the Year 2021” by Bloomberg Businessweek/Chinese Edition, an internationally renowned financial magazine. This is the first time for the Group to receive the award from Bloomberg Businessweek/Chinese Edition, which fully recognizes the Group’s steady operating performance and development potential.

Bloomberg Businessweek/Chinese Edition is a renowned business news magazine in the Greater China region and its publication is authorized by Bloomberg L.P. based in the United States. It is highly influential and internationally renowned in Asia. The “Listed Enterprises of the Year 2021” award is the first listed enterprises award applying Bloomberg Terminal data in the judging process in Hong Kong. Through the terminal analysis and a panel of professional judges formed by authoritative and well-known individuals from the government officials, professionals, and academics, the assessment results are comprehensively analyzed and screened in eight aspects, namely business/financial performance, corporate governance, investor relations, development strategy, corporate social responsibility, sustainability, innovation and risk management. Therefore, the “Listed Enterprises of the Year 2021” award is widely recognized and representative, and is one of the most authoritative selection activities of financial community.

Being awarded the “Listed Enterprises of the Year 2021” is a significant encouragement to the Group from the capital market, which is inseparable from the continuous and stable operation of Accel Group. After nearly 30 years of hard work, Accel Group has participated in a number of large-scale landmark projects in Hong Kong and Macau, giving full play to its solid E & M engineering advantages, and cooperated with powerful developers to jointly promote projects. The business has gradually expanded and become a leading high-quality E & M engineering service provider in the industry. With a proven track record, the Group continued to be awarded with a number of large-scale projects to sustain its foundation. At present, the Group is also moving towards diversification in an orderly manner, including planning to enter into the fields of green building and smart innovation and technology, and the achievements of the enterprises are widely recognized in the market, which is a strong testament to its honor.

 

Since its listing in Hong Kong in 2019, Accel Group has been awarded by the market for several times, including being awarded the “Outstanding Newly-listed Enterprises Award of the Year” and “Forbes Asia’s 200 Best under a Million”and being included in the MSCI Hong Kong Micro Cap Index by a leading US-based index compilation company; Also, the Group was awarded a number of E & M engineering industry awards, which fully reflected that the capital market and the industry highly recognized the Group’s operating results and development prospects.

 

Dr. Ko Laihung, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the Group, said, “We are very honored that Accel Group was once again awarded a significant award in the capital market, thanks to the efforts of the Group’s outstanding management talents and highly skilled technical personnel over the years, as well as our achievements in project operation and service level. The Group will continue to give full play to the ‘craftsmanship’ spirit, constantly strive for excellence, strengthen high-quality service capabilities, maintain sound business growth, demonstrate the market value of the Group, and strive to create higher value for investors.”

About Accel Group Holdings Limited (Stock code: 1283.HK)

Accel Group Holdings Limited (the “Group”) listed on the Main Board of the Stock Exchange of Hong Kong Limited in 2019. It is an electrical and mechanical engineering services provider with good track record. Its key customers are famous developers and architectural firms in Hong Kong. The Group has established experience in several significant construction projects for famous developers and architectural firms in Hong Kong. The Group is mainly engaged in installing electrical and mechanical facilities for various developers, including the installation of air-conditioning system, drainage system, water supply, swimming pool and fountain system, electrical and control system as well as smart electrical control system in buildings. The Group is committed to providing quality electrical and mechanical engineering services. At the same time, Accel Group continues to expand its business, and its wholly-owned subsidiaries, Accel Green Building Limited and Accel Innovations Limited, are committed to creating business opportunities for the Group in terms of low-carbon, energy-saving, green and intelligent construction.

#AccelGroupHoldingsLimited

Okta Announces Strong Third Quarter Results

  • Q3 revenue grew 61% year-over-year; subscription revenue grew 63% year-over-year
  • Remaining performance obligations (RPO) grew 49% year-over-year to $2.35 billion
  • Increases revenue and operating profit outlook for fiscal 2022
  • Okta and Okta (Auth0) Both Named as Leaders in 2021 Gartner® Magic Quadrant™ for Access Management; Okta positioned highest in Ability to Execute

SINGAPORE – Media OutReach – 2 December 2021 – Okta, Inc. (Nasdaq: OKTA), the leading independent identity provider, today announced financial results for its third quarter ended October 31, 2021.

“Our strong third quarter results reflect the continued shift to Identity-First architectures and the critical adoption of Zero Trust security environments, which are both propelling our market leading position,” said Todd McKinnon, Chief Executive Officer and co-founder of Okta. “We’re maintaining the momentum of both Okta and Auth0 and are making great progress on the integration. We’re already seeing early success cross-selling into each other’s customer bases and are on our way to capturing more of the massive identity market faster together.”

Third Quarter Fiscal 2022 Financial Highlights:


  • Revenue: Total revenue was $351 million, an increase of 61% year-over-year. Subscription revenue was $337 million, an increase of 63% year-over-year. On an Okta standalone basis (excluding $46 million attributable to Auth0), total revenue grew 40%.
  • Remaining Performance Obligations (RPO): RPO, or subscription backlog, was $2.35 billion, an increase of 49% year-over-year. Current RPO, which is contracted subscription revenue expected to be recognized over the next 12 months, was $1.18 billion, up 57% compared to the third quarter of fiscal 2021.
  • Calculated Billings: Total calculated billings, net of acquired deferred revenue, was $389 million, an increase of 54% year-over-year. Calculated billings includes the effect of billings process improvements that were enacted at the end of the first quarter of fiscal 2022. Excluding these changes, calculated billings would have been $387 million, an increase of 53% year-over-year.
  • GAAP Operating Loss: GAAP operating loss was $199 million, or 57% of total revenue, compared to a GAAP operating loss of $52 million, or 24% of total revenue, in the third quarter of fiscal 2021.
  • Non-GAAP Operating Income/Loss: Non-GAAP operating loss was $10 million, or (3)% of total revenue, compared to non-GAAP operating income of $6 million, or 3% of total revenue, in the third quarter of fiscal 2021.
  • GAAP Net Loss: GAAP net loss was $221 million, compared to a GAAP net loss of $73 million in the third quarter of fiscal 2021. GAAP net loss per share was $1.44, compared to a GAAP net loss per share of $0.56 in the third quarter of fiscal 2021. GAAP net loss and GAAP net loss per share include $120 million and $0.78, respectively, attributable to Auth0 in the third quarter of fiscal 2022.
  • Non-GAAP Net Income/Loss: Non-GAAP net loss was $11 million, compared to non-GAAP net income of $6 million in the third quarter of fiscal 2021. Non-GAAP basic and diluted net loss per share was $0.07, compared to non-GAAP basic and diluted net income per share of $0.04 in the third quarter of fiscal 2021.
  • Cash Flow: Net cash provided by operations was $37 million, or 11% of total revenue, compared to net cash provided by operations of $43 million, or 20% of total revenue, in the third quarter of fiscal 2021. Free cash flow was $33 million, or 10% of total revenue, compared to $42 million, or 19% of total revenue, in the third quarter of fiscal 2021.
  • Cash, cash equivalents, and short-term investments were $2.48 billion at October 31, 2021.
  • The section titled “Non-GAAP Financial Measures” below contains a description of the non-GAAP financial measures, and reconciliations between GAAP and non-GAAP information are contained in the tables below.

Financial Outlook:

Okta’s financial outlook for the fourth quarter and full year fiscal 2022 includes the expected contribution from the acquisition of Auth0, net of purchase accounting adjustments.

For the fourth quarter of fiscal 2022, the Company expects:

  • Total revenue of $358 million to $360 million, representing a growth rate of 53% year-over-year;
  • Non-GAAP operating loss of $35 million to $34 million; and
  • Non-GAAP net loss per share of $0.25 to $0.24, assuming weighted-average shares outstanding of approximately 154 million.

For the full year fiscal 2022, the Company now expects:

  • Total revenue of $1.275 billion to $1.277 billion, representing a growth rate of 53% year-over-year;
  • Non-GAAP operating loss of $85 million to $84 million; and
  • Non-GAAP net loss per share of $0.53 to $0.52, assuming weighted-average shares outstanding of approximately 147 million.

These statements are forward-looking and actual results may differ materially. Refer to the Forward-Looking Statements safe harbor below for information on the factors that could cause our actual results to differ materially from these forward-looking statements.

Okta has not reconciled its expectations as to non-GAAP operating loss and non-GAAP net loss per share to their most directly comparable GAAP measures because certain items are out of Okta’s control or cannot be reasonably predicted. Accordingly, reconciliations for forward-looking non-GAAP operating loss and non-GAAP net loss per share are not available without unreasonable effort.


Gartner Magic Quadrant:

Finally, Okta is pleased to highlight its recognition as a Leader in the 2021 Gartner Magic Quadrant for Access Management. The report evaluated 12 vendors on 15 criteria and placed both Okta and Okta (Auth0) in the Leaders Quadrant. This marks the fifth consecutive year in which Okta has been named a Leader, and the first for Okta (Auth0). A complimentary version of the full report can be found here.


Conference Call Information:

Okta will host a live video webcast at 2:00 p.m. Pacific Time on December 1, 2021 to discuss the results and outlook. The news release with the financial results will be accessible from the Company’s website at investor.okta.com prior to the conference call. The live video webcast of the conference call will be accessible from the Okta investor relations website at investor.okta.com.


Gartner Disclaimers:

GARTNER and MAGIC QUADRANT are registered trademarks and service marks of Gartner, Inc. and/or its affiliates in the U.S. and internationally and are used herein with permission. All rights reserved. Gartner does not endorse any vendor, product or service depicted in its research publications and does not advise technology users to select only those vendors with the highest ratings or other designation. Gartner research publications consist of the opinions of Gartner’s Research & Advisory organization and should not be construed as statements of fact. Gartner disclaims all warranties, expressed or implied, with respect to this research, including any warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose.


Supplemental Financial and Other Information:

Supplemental financial and other information can be accessed through the Company’s investor relations website at investor.okta.com.


Non-GAAP Financial Measures:

This press release and the accompanying tables contain the following non-GAAP financial measures: non-GAAP gross profit, non-GAAP gross margin, non-GAAP operating income (loss), non-GAAP operating margin, non-GAAP net income (loss), non-GAAP net margin, non-GAAP net income (loss) per share, basic and diluted, free cash flow, free cash flow margin, current calculated billings and calculated billings. Certain of these non-GAAP financial measures exclude stock-based compensation, non-cash charitable contributions, amortization of acquired intangibles, acquisition and integration-related expenses, amortization of debt discount and debt issuance costs and loss on early extinguishment and conversion of debt.

Okta believes that non-GAAP financial information, when taken collectively with GAAP financial measures, may be helpful to investors because it provides consistency and comparability with past financial performance and assists in comparisons with other companies, some of which use similar non-GAAP financial information to supplement their GAAP results. The non-GAAP financial information is presented for supplemental informational purposes only, and should not be considered a substitute for financial information presented in accordance with GAAP, and may be different from similarly-titled non-GAAP measures used by other companies.

The principal limitation of these non-GAAP financial measures is that they exclude significant expenses that are required by GAAP to be recorded in the Company’s financial statements. In addition, they are subject to inherent limitations as they reflect the exercise of judgment by the Company’s management about which expenses are excluded or included in determining these non-GAAP financial measures. A reconciliation is provided below for each non-GAAP financial measure to the most directly comparable financial measure stated in accordance with GAAP.

Okta encourages investors to review the related GAAP financial measures and the reconciliation of these non-GAAP financial measures to their most directly comparable GAAP financial measures, which it includes in press releases announcing quarterly financial results, including this press release, and not to rely on any single financial measure to evaluate the Company’s business.

Forward-Looking Statements: This press release contains “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the “safe harbor” provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including but not limited to, statements regarding our financial outlook, business strategy and plans, market trends and market size, opportunities and positioning and expected benefits that will be derived from the Auth0 transaction. These forward-looking statements are based on current expectations, estimates, forecasts and projections. Words such as “expect,” “anticipate,” “should,” “believe,” “hope,” “target,” “project,” “goals,” “estimate,” “potential,” “predict,” “may,” “will,” “might,” “could,” “intend,” “shall” and variations of these terms and similar expressions are intended to identify these forward-looking statements, although not all forward-looking statements contain these identifying words. Forward-looking statements are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties, many of which involve factors or circumstances that are beyond our control. For example, the market for our products may develop more slowly than expected or than it has in the past; our results of operations may fluctuate more than expected; there may be significant fluctuations in our results of operations and cash flows related to our revenue recognition or otherwise; the impact of COVID-19, related public health measures and any associated economic downturn on our business and results of operations may be more than we expect; a network or data security incident that allows unauthorized access to our network or data or our customers’ data could damage our reputation; we could experience interruptions or performance problems associated with our technology, including a service outage; we may not be able to pay off our convertible senior notes when due; global economic conditions could deteriorate; we may not achieve expected synergies and efficiencies of operations between Okta and Auth0, and we may not be able to successfully integrate the companies. Further information on potential factors that could affect our financial results is included in our most recent Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q and our other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The forward-looking statements included in this press release represent our views only as of the date of this press release and we assume no obligation and do not intend to update these forward-looking statements.


OKTA, INC.

CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS

(In thousands, except per share data)

(unaudited)

 

 

Three Months Ended
October 31,

 

Nine Months Ended
October 31,

 

2021

 

 

2020

 

 

2021

 

 

2020

 

Revenue:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Subscription

$

336,702

 

 

 

$

206,743

 

 

 

$

879,881

 

 

 

$

571,213

 

 

Professional services and other

13,978

 

 

 

10,636

 

 

 

37,305

 

 

 

29,471

 

 

Total revenue

350,680

 

 

 

217,379

 

 

 

917,186

 

 

 

600,684

 

 

Cost of revenue:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Subscription(1)

91,048

 

 

 

44,762

 

 

 

227,903

 

 

 

121,420

 

 

Professional services and other(1)

18,626

 

 

 

12,146

 

 

 

49,000

 

 

 

35,121

 

 

Total cost of revenue

109,674

 

 

 

56,908

 

 

 

276,903

 

 

 

156,541

 

 

Gross profit

241,006

 

 

 

160,471

 

 

 

640,283

 

 

 

444,143

 

 

Operating expenses:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Research and development(1)

130,535

 

 

 

58,150

 

 

 

321,805

 

 

 

160,510

 

 

Sales and marketing(1)

203,878

 

 

 

109,812

 

 

 

548,749

 

 

 

312,177

 

 

General and administrative(1)

105,149

 

 

 

44,485

 

 

 

322,406

 

 

 

121,019

 

 

Total operating expenses

439,562

 

 

 

212,447

 

 

 

1,192,960

 

 

 

593,706

 

 

Operating loss

(198,556

)

 

 

(51,976

)

 

 

(552,677

)

 

 

(149,563

)

 

Interest expense

(23,144

)

 

 

(22,368

)

 

 

(68,776

)

 

 

(50,063

)

 

Interest income and other, net

1,056

 

 

 

1,878

 

 

 

7,622

 

 

 

10,737

 

 

Loss on early extinguishment and conversion of debt

 

 

 

(89

)

 

 

(179

)

 

 

(2,263

)

 

Interest and other, net

(22,088

)

 

 

(20,579

)

 

 

(61,333

)

 

 

(41,589

)

 

Loss before provision for (benefit from) income taxes

(220,644

)

 

 

(72,555

)

 

 

(614,010

)

 

 

(191,152

)

 

Provision for (benefit from) income taxes

667

 

 

 

209

 

 

 

(6,785

)

 

 

(626

)

 

Net loss

$

(221,311

)

 

 

$

(72,764

)

 

 

$

(607,225

)

 

 

$

(190,526

)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Net loss per share, basic and diluted

$

(1.44

)

 

 

$

(0.56

)

 

 

$

(4.17

)

 

 

$

(1.51

)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Weighted-average shares used to compute net loss per share, basic and diluted

153,756

 

 

 

128,813

 

 

 

145,782

 

 

 

126,222

 

 

(1) Amounts include stock-based compensation expense as follows (in thousands):

 

Three Months Ended
October 31,

 

Nine Months Ended
October 31,

 

2021

 

2020

 

2021

 

2020

Cost of subscription revenue

$

13,455

 

 

$

6,090

 

 

$

33,843

 

 

$

15,229

 

Cost of professional services and other

3,376

 

 

2,113

 

 

8,879

 

 

5,924

 

Research and development

56,573

 

 

17,546

 

 

129,998

 

 

44,434

 

Sales and marketing

39,248

 

 

14,368

 

 

101,602

 

 

38,693

 

General and administrative

43,133

 

 

13,535

 

 

133,289

 

 

35,494

 

Total stock-based compensation expense

$

155,785

 

 

$

53,652

 

 

$

407,611

 

 

$

139,774

 

 

 


OKTA, INC.

CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS

(In thousands)

(unaudited)

 

 

 

October 31,

 

January 31,

 

 

2021

 

 

2021

 

Assets

 

 

 

 

Current assets:

 

 

 

 

Cash and cash equivalents

 

$

372,372

 

 

 

$

434,607

 

 

Short-term investments

 

2,109,687

 

 

 

2,121,584

 

 

Accounts receivable, net of allowances

 

253,568

 

 

 

194,818

 

 

Deferred commissions

 

60,465

 

 

 

45,949

 

 

Prepaid expenses and other current assets

 

56,776

 

 

 

81,609

 

 

Total current assets

 

2,852,868

 

 

 

2,878,567

 

 

Property and equipment, net

 

60,751

 

 

 

62,783

 

 

Operating lease right-of-use assets

 

154,522

 

 

 

149,604

 

 

Deferred commissions, noncurrent

 

145,655

 

 

 

108,555

 

 

Intangible assets, net

 

336,354

 

 

 

27,009

 

 

Goodwill

 

5,401,343

 

 

 

48,023

 

 

Other assets

 

45,480

 

 

 

24,256

 

 

Total assets

 

$

8,996,973

 

 

 

$

3,298,797

 

 

Liabilities and stockholders’ equity

 

 

 

 

Current liabilities:

 

 

 

 

Accounts payable

 

$

11,547

 

 

 

$

8,557

 

 

Accrued expenses and other current liabilities

 

91,516

 

 

 

53,729

 

 

Accrued compensation

 

109,233

 

 

 

71,906

 

 

Convertible senior notes, net

 

15,956

 

 

 

908,684

 

 

Deferred revenue

 

759,914

 

 

 

502,738

 

 

Total current liabilities

 

988,166

 

 

 

1,545,614

 

 

Convertible senior notes, net, noncurrent

 

1,793,970

 

 

 

857,387

 

 

Operating lease liabilities, noncurrent

 

179,205

 

 

 

179,518

 

 

Deferred revenue, noncurrent

 

17,958

 

 

 

10,860

 

 

Other liabilities, noncurrent

 

33,119

 

 

 

11,375

 

 

Total liabilities

 

3,012,418

 

 

 

2,604,754

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Stockholders’ equity:

 

 

 

 

Preferred stock

 

 

 

 

 

 

Class A common stock

 

15

 

 

 

12

 

 

Class B common stock

 

1

 

 

 

1

 

 

Additional paid-in capital

 

7,558,816

 

 

 

1,656,096

 

 

Accumulated other comprehensive income

 

404

 

 

 

5,390

 

 

Accumulated deficit

 

(1,574,681

)

 

 

(967,456

)

 

Total stockholders’ equity

 

5,984,555

 

 

 

694,043

 

 

Total liabilities and stockholders’ equity

 

$

8,996,973

 

 

 

$

3,298,797

 

 

 


OKTA, INC.

SUMMARY OF CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS

(In thousands)

(unaudited)

 

 

Nine Months Ended October 31,

 

2021

 

 

2020(1)

 

Cash flows from operating activities:

 

 

 

Net loss

$

(607,225

)

 

 

$

(190,526

)

 

Adjustments to reconcile net loss to net cash provided by operating activities:

 

 

 

Stock-based compensation

407,611

 

 

 

139,774

 

 

Depreciation, amortization and accretion

76,631

 

 

 

23,694

 

 

Amortization of debt discount and issuance costs

64,478

 

 

 

47,261

 

 

Amortization of deferred commissions

40,041

 

 

 

28,428

 

 

Deferred income taxes

(13,606

)

 

 

(2,414

)

 

Non-cash charitable contributions

5,649

 

 

 

4,662

 

 

Loss on early extinguishment and conversion of debt

179

 

 

 

2,263

 

 

(Gain) loss on strategic investments

(5,665

)

 

 

628

 

 

Other, net

(267

)

 

 

3,887

 

 

Changes in operating assets and liabilities:

 

 

 

Accounts receivable

(29,561

)

 

 

(10,547

)

 

Deferred commissions

(92,183

)

 

 

(51,837

)

 

Prepaid expenses and other assets

5,356

 

 

 

(6,794

)

 

Operating lease right-of-use assets

16,564

 

 

 

13,979

 

 

Accounts payable

(195

)

 

 

1,377

 

 

Accrued compensation

19,488

 

 

 

37,863

 

 

Accrued expenses and other liabilities

22,537

 

 

 

2,442

 

 

Operating lease liabilities

(17,280

)

 

 

(11,750

)

 

Deferred revenue

198,035

 

 

 

60,663

 

 

Net cash provided by operating activities

90,587

 

 

 

93,053

 

 

Cash flows from investing activities:

 

 

 

Capitalization of internal-use software costs

(2,348

)

 

 

(3,530

)

 

Purchases of property and equipment

(5,800

)

 

 

(11,297

)

 

Purchases of securities available for sale and other

(1,333,617

)

 

 

(1,845,958

)

 

Proceeds from maturities and redemption of securities available for sale

1,118,448

 

 

 

386,774

 

 

Proceeds from sales of securities available for sale and other

228,344

 

 

 

206,129

 

 

Payments for business acquisitions, net of cash acquired

(215,129

)

 

 

 

 

Net cash used in investing activities

(210,102

)

 

 

(1,267,882

)

 

Cash flows from financing activities:

 

 

 

Proceeds from issuance of convertible senior notes, net of issuance costs

 

 

 

1,134,841

 

 

Payments for repurchases and conversions of convertible senior notes

(26

)

 

 

(447

)

 

Proceeds from hedges related to convertible senior notes

2

 

 

 

195,046

 

 

Payments for warrants related to convertible senior notes

 

 

 

(175,399

)

 

Purchases of capped calls related to convertible senior notes

 

 

 

(133,975

)

 

Proceeds from stock option exercises

41,054

 

 

 

33,570

 

 

Proceeds from shares issued in connection with employee stock purchase plan

17,417

 

 

 

12,821

 

 

Net cash provided by financing activities

58,447

 

 

 

1,066,457

 

 

Effects of changes in foreign currency exchange rates on cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash

(494

)

 

 

121

 

 

Net decrease in cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash

(61,562

)

 

 

(108,251

)

 

Cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash at beginning of period

448,630

 

 

 

531,953

 

 

Cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash at end of period

$

387,068

 

 

 

$

423,702

 

 

 

(1) The condensed consolidated statement of cash flows for the prior period has been adjusted to conform to current period presentation.


OKTA, INC.
Reconciliation of GAAP to Non-GAAP Data
(In thousands, except percentages and per share data)
(unaudited)


Non-GAAP Gross Profit and Non-GAAP Gross Margin


We define Non-GAAP gross profit and Non-GAAP gross margin as GAAP gross profit and GAAP gross margin, adjusted for stock-based compensation expense included in cost of revenue, amortization of acquired intangibles and acquisition and integration-related expenses.

 

Three Months Ended
October 31,

 

Nine Months Ended
October 31,

 

2021

 

2020

 

2021

 

2020

Gross profit

$

241,006

 

 

$

160,471

 

 

$

640,283

 

 

$

444,143

 

Add:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Stock-based compensation expense included in cost of revenue(1)

16,831

 

 

8,203

 

 

42,722

 

 

21,153

 

Amortization of acquired intangibles

11,335

 

 

1,593

 

 

23,056

 

 

4,780

 

Acquisition and integration-related expenses(2)

658

 

 

 

 

1,316

 

 

 

Non-GAAP gross profit

$

269,830

 

 

$

170,267

 

 

$

707,377

 

 

$

470,076

 

Gross margin

69

%

 

74

%

 

70

%

 

74

%

Non-GAAP gross margin

77

%

 

78

%

 

77

%

 

78

%

(1)

See table in footnote (1) to the condensed consolidated statements of operations above for breakdown of stock-based compensation expense by line item.

(2)

Acquisition and integration-related expenses include transaction costs and other non-recurring incremental costs incurred through the one-year anniversary of transaction close.


Non-GAAP Operating Income (Loss) and Non-GAAP Operating Margin


We define Non-GAAP operating income (loss) and Non-GAAP operating margin as GAAP operating loss and GAAP operating margin, adjusted for stock-based compensation expense, non-cash charitable contributions, amortization of acquired intangibles and acquisition and integration-related expenses.

 

Three Months Ended
October 31,

 

Nine Months Ended
October 31,

 

2021

 

 

2020

 

 

2021

 

 

2020

 

Operating loss

$

(198,556

)

 

 

$

(51,976

)

 

 

$

(552,677

)

 

 

$

(149,563

)

 

Add:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Stock-based compensation expense(1)

155,785

 

 

 

53,652

 

 

 

407,611

 

 

 

139,774

 

 

Non-cash charitable contributions

1,986

 

 

 

2,245

 

 

 

5,649

 

 

 

4,662

 

 

Amortization of acquired intangibles

21,204

 

 

 

1,593

 

 

 

42,795

 

 

 

4,780

 

 

Acquisition and integration-related expenses(2)

10,060

 

 

 

 

 

 

46,664

 

 

 

 

 

Non-GAAP operating income (loss)

$

(9,521

)

 

 

$

5,514

 

 

 

$

(49,958

)

 

 

$

(347

)

 

Operating margin

(57

)

%

 

(24

)

%

 

(60

)

%

 

(25

)

%

Non-GAAP operating margin

(3

)

%

 

3

 

%

 

(5

)

%

 

 

%

(1)

See table in footnote (1) to the condensed consolidated statements of operations above for breakdown of stock-based compensation expense by line item.

(2)

Acquisition and integration-related expenses include transaction costs and other non-recurring incremental costs incurred through the one-year anniversary of transaction close.


Non-GAAP Net Income (Loss), Non-GAAP Net Margin and Non-GAAP Net Income (Loss) Per Share, Basic and Diluted


We define Non-GAAP net income (loss) and Non-GAAP net margin as GAAP net loss and GAAP net margin, adjusted for stock-based compensation expense, non-cash charitable contributions, amortization of acquired intangibles, acquisition and integration-related expenses, amortization of debt discount and debt issuance costs and loss on early extinguishment and conversion of debt.

We define Non-GAAP net income (loss) per share, basic, as Non-GAAP net income (loss) divided by GAAP weighted-average shares used to compute net loss per share, basic and diluted.

We define Non-GAAP net income (loss) per share, diluted, as Non-GAAP net income (loss) divided by GAAP weighted-average shares used to compute net loss per share, basic and diluted adjusted for the potentially dilutive effect of (i) employee equity incentive plans, excluding the impact of unrecognized stock-based compensation expense, and (ii) convertible senior notes outstanding and related warrants. In addition, Non-GAAP net income (loss) per share, diluted, includes the anti-dilutive impact of our note hedge and capped call agreements on convertible senior notes outstanding. Accordingly, we did not record any adjustments to Non-GAAP net income (loss) for the potential impact of the convertible senior notes outstanding under the if-converted method.

 

 

Three Months Ended
October 31,

 

Nine Months Ended
October 31,

 

 

2021

 

 

2020

 

 

2021

 

 

2020

 

Net loss

 

$

(221,311

)

 

 

$

(72,764

)

 

 

$

(607,225

)

 

 

$

(190,526

)

 

Add:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Stock-based compensation expense(1)

 

155,785

 

 

 

53,652

 

 

 

407,611

 

 

 

139,774

 

 

Non-cash charitable contributions

 

1,986

 

 

 

2,245

 

 

 

5,649

 

 

 

4,662

 

 

Amortization of acquired intangibles

 

21,204

 

 

 

1,593

 

 

 

42,795

 

 

 

4,780

 

 

Acquisition and integration-related expenses(2)

 

10,060

 

 

 

 

 

 

46,664

 

 

 

 

 

Amortization of debt discount and debt issuance costs

 

21,698

 

 

 

20,931

 

 

 

64,478

 

 

 

47,261

 

 

Loss on early extinguishment and conversion of debt

 

 

 

 

89

 

 

 

179

 

 

 

2,263

 

 

Non-GAAP net income (loss)

 

$

(10,578

)

 

 

$

5,746

 

 

 

$

(39,849

)

 

 

$

8,214

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Net margin

 

(63

)

%

 

(33

)

%

 

(66

)

%

 

(32

)

%

Non-GAAP net margin

 

(3

)

%

 

3

 

%

 

(4

)

%

 

1

 

%

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Weighted-average shares used to compute net loss per share, basic and diluted

 

153,756

 

 

 

128,813

 

 

 

145,782

 

 

 

126,222

 

 

Non-GAAP weighted-average effect of potentially dilutive securities

 

 

 

 

14,579

 

 

 

 

 

 

15,714

 

 

Non-GAAP weighted-average shares used to compute non-GAAP net income (loss) per share, diluted

 

153,756

 

 

 

143,392

 

 

 

145,782

 

 

 

141,936

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Net loss per share, basic and diluted

 

$

(1.44

)

 

 

$

(0.56

)

 

 

$

(4.17

)

 

 

$

(1.51

)

 

Non-GAAP net income (loss) per share, basic

 

$

(0.07

)

 

 

$

0.04

 

 

 

$

(0.27

)

 

 

$

0.07

 

 

Non-GAAP net income (loss) per share, diluted

 

$

(0.07

)

 

 

$

0.04

 

 

 

$

(0.27

)

 

 

$

0.06

 

 

(1)

See table in footnote (1) to the condensed consolidated statements of operations above for breakdown of stock-based compensation expense by line item.

(2)

Acquisition and integration-related expenses include transaction costs and other non-recurring incremental costs incurred through the one-year anniversary of transaction close.


OKTA, INC.
Reconciliation of GAAP to Non-GAAP Financial Measures
(In thousands, except percentages)
(unaudited)


Free Cash Flow and Free Cash Flow Margin


We define Free cash flow as net cash provided by operating activities, less cash used for purchases of property and equipment, net of sales proceeds, and capitalized internal-use software costs. Free cash flow margin is calculated as Free cash flow divided by total revenue.

 

 

Three Months Ended
October 31,

 

Nine Months Ended
October 31,

 

 

2021

 

 

2020

 

 

2021

 

 

2020

 

Net cash provided by operating activities

 

$

37,120

 

 

 

$

43,426

 

 

 

$

90,587

 

 

 

$

93,053

 

 

Less:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Purchases of property and equipment

 

(1,766

)

 

 

(628

)

 

 

(5,800

)

 

 

(11,297

)

 

Capitalization of internal-use software costs

 

(1,970

)

 

 

(1,204

)

 

 

(2,348

)

 

 

(3,530

)

 

Free cash flow

 

$

33,384

 

 

 

$

41,594

 

 

 

$

82,439

 

 

 

$

78,226

 

 

Net cash provided by (used in) investing activities

 

$

101,459

 

 

 

$

(595,621

)

 

 

$

(210,102

)

 

 

$

(1,267,882

)

 

Net cash provided by financing activities

 

$

9,214

 

 

 

$

5,210

 

 

 

$

58,447

 

 

 

$

1,066,457

 

 

Free cash flow margin

 

10

 

%

 

19

 

%

 

9

 

%

 

13

 

%


Calculated Billings

We define Calculated billings as total revenue plus the change in deferred revenue, net of acquired deferred revenue, and less the change in unbilled receivables, net of acquired unbilled receivables, in the period.

 

 

Three Months Ended
October 31,

 

Nine Months Ended
October 31,

 

 

2021

 

 

2020

 

 

2021

 

 

2020

 

Total revenue

 

$

350,680

 

 

 

$

217,379

 

 

 

$

917,186

 

 

 

$

600,684

 

 

Add:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Deferred revenue, current (end of period)

 

759,914

 

 

 

424,765

 

 

 

759,914

 

 

 

424,765

 

 

Unbilled receivables, current (beginning of period)

 

3,409

 

 

 

2,113

 

 

 

2,604

 

 

 

1,026

 

 

Acquired unbilled receivables, current

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2,327

 

 

 

 

 

Less:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Deferred revenue, current (beginning of period)

 

(721,808

)

 

 

(391,246

)

 

 

(502,738

)

 

 

(365,236

)

 

Unbilled receivables, current (end of period)

 

(5,085

)

 

 

(2,427

)

 

 

(5,085

)

 

 

(2,427

)

 

Acquired deferred revenue, current

 

(900

)

 

 

 

 

 

(61,422

)

 

 

 

 

Current calculated billings

 

386,210

 

 

 

250,584

 

 

 

1,112,786

 

 

 

658,812

 

 

Add:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Deferred revenue, noncurrent (end of period)

 

17,958

 

 

 

7,349

 

 

 

17,958

 

 

 

7,349

 

 

Less:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Deferred revenue, noncurrent (beginning of period)

 

(15,489

)

 

 

(5,574

)

 

 

(10,860

)

 

 

(6,214

)

 

Acquired deferred revenue, noncurrent

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

(4,817

)

 

 

 

 

Calculated billings

 

$

388,679

 

 

 

$

252,359

 

 

 

$

1,115,067

 

 

 

$

659,947

 

 

About Okta

Okta is the leading independent identity provider. The Okta Identity Cloud enables organizations to securely connect the right people to the right technologies at the right time. With more than 7,000 pre-built integrations to applications and infrastructure providers, Okta provides simple and secure access to people and organizations everywhere, giving them the confidence to reach their full potential. More than 14,000 organizations, including JetBlue, Nordstrom, Siemens, Slack, Takeda, Teach for America, and Twilio, trust Okta to help protect the identities of their workforces and customers.

Okta uses its investor.okta.com website as a means of disclosing material non-public information, announcing upcoming investor conferences and for complying with its disclosure obligations under Regulation FD. Accordingly, you should monitor our investor relations website in addition to following our press releases, SEC filings and public conference calls and webcasts.

#Okta

MIPIM Asia celebrates its 15th anniversary & makes a grand return in 2021 to initiate a new era with Asia Pacific’s property leaders

Paving the way for Asian property markets, this year’s summit will inspire further innovation and prosperity across the industry

HONG KONG SAR – Media OutReach – 2 December 2021 – The long anticipated MIPIM Asia Summit 2021, revives its in-person conference and sought-after MIPIM Asia Awards Ceremony at the Grand Hyatt, Hong Kong for two days from 7th to 8th December 2021.

 

Over the past few years, Asia has shown unbreakable resilience despite disputes across the trade and from uncertainties caused by the pandemic. Thus, with the theme “Initiating a New Era”, MIPIM is proud to be hosting a safe event to shine light on increasingly important topics, from sustainable development to regional investment prospects, as well as to proudly showcase award-deserving projects that continued to thrive amidst the global lockdown.

 

The Hon Mrs Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor, GBM, GBS, The Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, will deliver a Welcome Keynote at the long-awaited celebratory luncheon for the MIPIM Asia Awards 2020 winners, on 7th December to show her unconditional support towards industry professionals. Day one of MIPIM Asia Summit will feature two conference discussions on the ongoing pursuit of Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) and technological innovations in the region, as well as, insights on the hospitality & retail industries during the pandemic era.

 

The opening day topics will be led by panelists, including Mr Gene Soo, Head of Ecosystem at MTR, who will discuss ESG and technology innovation, Dr Aron Harilela, Chairman and CEO of Harilela Hotels Limited, Mr Stephen Ho, President-Growth & Operations, Asia Pacific of Hyatt Hotels Corporation, and Mr Girish Jhunjhnuwala, Founder and CEO of Ovolo Hotels who will delve into the hospitality industry. And Mr Christopher John Wu, Chief Financial Officer of Chongbang Development Ltd., Mr Yu Yang, Chief Investment Officer of Chelsfield, Mr Dennis Au, Managing Director of Real Estate of Chinachem Group, and Mr Gerald Li, Co-founder of Leading Nation Hospitality, who will speak on how F&B is transforming retail, alongside many other distinguished speakers.

 

Additionally, attendees will engage in insightful discussions about managing investment portfolios during the pandemic, with a panel of experienced investors including: Mr Laurent Fischler, Vice President of Ivanhoe Cambridge, Mr Kenny Lam, Senior Managing Director and Head of Asia Real Estate Investments at Manulife, Mr Myung Joo, Managing Director & Head of Investments and Investment Banking at KIS, Mr Chew Fook Aun, Vice Chairman of Lai Sun Group, Mr Raymond Kwok, Senior Investment Director of International Properties at Nan Fung Group, Ms Christina Gaw, Managing Principal and Global Head of Capital Markets at Gaw Capital, and Mr Qiqi Zhang, Managing Director at Warburg Pincus.

The final day of the summit, invites keynote speeches from two of Hong Kong’s property leaders, Mr Adriel Chan, Vice Chair of Hang Lung Properties Limited and Ms Winnie Chiu, J.P., President and Executive Director of Dorsett Hospitality International. They will be providing their insights on how sustainability and innovation in the built environment have evolved and accelerated since the pandemic. The conference will also explore in detail, real estate investment strategies across the Asia Pacific region, such as the latest competitive market trends through inbound, outbound, and alternative investments respectively.

 

Panelists on the final day feature notable guests like Mr Nigel Smith, Managing Director of Colliers, Ms Zoe Zuo, Managing Director and Co-head of China Real Estate Angelo Gordon and more.

 

Also, an unmissable event of the MIPIM Asia Summit, the “Meet the Chairmen” panel will feature the leading lights of the Asian property industry Mr Justin Chiu, Executive Director of CK Asset Holdings, Mr Kenneth Gaw, President and Managing Principal Gaw Capital, and Mr George Hongchoy, Executive Director & Chief Executive Officer Link Asset Management Limited, who will elaborate on ‘initiating a new era’ in a post pandemic environment and paving the way for long-term economic growth.

 

To conclude the whole summit, MIPIM Asia will host a grand dinner that will have everyone paying close attention to the announcement the 33 winners of the highly sought-after, MIPIM Asia Awards 2021, whose highest achieving teams will be joining to celebrate their successes.

 

We look forward to welcoming everyone to The MIPIM Asia Summit where we will take all the necessary precautions to provide you with the safest possible networking and conference environment. For more information about the precautionary measures please visit our website.

 

The MIPIM Asia Summit programme is available on our website.

For more details, please follow MIPIM: Facebook Twitter LinkedIn

About MIPIM Asia Summit

MIPIM Asia Summit is the annual property leaders’ summit in Asia Pacific organised by Reed MIDEM. It is the major gathering where top-level decision makers gather to explore new business partnerships and investment opportunities. It features expert-led conference sessions, premium networking accelerators and an exclusive awards gala dinner over a two-day period. Distinguished speakers, senior executives, high-level business professionals and industry experts from around the world will discuss the latest developments and prevailing trends in the property and retail industry. MIPIM – the world’s property market – is the leading and largest global property event. The four-day event takes place annually in Cannes every March. 26,800 delegates attended in 2019 with 6,380 investors, and 100 different countries being represented.

About RX France:

RX France manages a portfolio of world-class, French and international face-to-face, virtual and hybrid events covering 20 industry sectors including MIPIM, MAPIC, Batimat, Pollutec, EquipHotel, SITL, IFTM Top Resa, MIPCOM, MIPTV, FIAC, Paris Photo… and many more. RX France’s events take place in France, China, India, Italy, Mexico, Russia and the United States. We serve our clients as we accompany their strategic business development and roll out the best of physical and digital events. RX France is part of RX (previously Reed Exhibitions). www.rxglobal.com

About RX Global:

RX is in the business of building businesses for individuals, communities and organisations. We elevate the power of face-to-face events by combining data and digital products to help customers learn about markets, source products and complete transactions at over 400 events in 22 countries across 43 industry sectors. RX is passionate about making a positive impact on society and is fully committed to creating an inclusive work environment for all our people. RX is part of RELX, a global provider of information-based analytics and decision tools for professional and business customers. www.rxglobal.com

#MIPIMAsiaSummit

NetApp Delivers Award-Winning Innovation to Enable Digital Transformation on AWS

At AWS re:Invent, NetApp Named 2021 AWS ISV Design Partner of the Year – US; Spot by NetApp Simplifies CloudOps with new portfolio updates

SINGAPORE – Media OutReach – 2 December 2021 – NetApp® (NASDAQ: NTAP), a global, cloud-led, data-centric software company, today announced new innovations in its product portfolio as well as award recognition from Amazon Web Services (AWS) for its achievements as an AWS Partner. Together, these announcements demonstrate how NetApp’s investments and vision are enabling any organization using AWS to access world-class cloud operations (CloudOps) and maximize the value of their investment.

At AWS re:Invent this week, NetApp was named the 2021 AWS Independent Software Vendor (ISV) Design Partner of the Year – US, for the jointly engineered and natively integrated Amazon FSx for NetApp ONTAP service. This fully-managed, multi-protocol storage service from AWS allows organizations to extend on-premises data onto AWS for enhanced data protection, migrate enterprise workloads without refactoring, and set the stage to run stateful Kubernetes applications. The award recognizes NetApp’s work in helping customers enable innovation and build solutions that drive digital and cloud transformation on the AWS Cloud.

“AWS Partners are critical to our customers’ success, and we are pleased to recognize NetApp as a 2021 AWS Partner of the Year US winner,” said Rachel Mushahwar, Head of Channel and Partner Sales – Americas, AWS. “I continue to be impressed by the commitment and innovation that NetApp offers our customers and how they are uniquely positioned to help accelerate our customers’ digital transformation journey. I look forward to working together and a great 2022.”

 

“We are proud to be named the AWS ISV Design Partner of the Year in the US,” said Anthony Lye, Executive Vice President and General Manager of Public Cloud Services at NetApp. “For nearly a decade, NetApp and AWS engineers have worked together to create industry-leading cloud services, so it’s incredibly exciting to see our joint innovation be recognized onstage at this year’s re:Invent. Together, NetApp and AWS are delivering the best of cloud to our customers and partners to deliver immediate business value, whether in the form of cost efficiency, compliance, data protection, or performance.”

 

NetApp also announced important milestones in the growth of its Spot by NetApp product portfolio for CloudOps, including:

 

Spot Ocean for Apache Spark

Part of the Spot Ocean suite of products, Spot Ocean for Apache Spark combines the infrastructure automation and optimization of Spot Wave together with Data Mechanics, recently acquired by NetApp, to give data infrastructure teams the power and flexibility of Apache Spark on Kubernetes without the complexity of managing and tuning infrastructure and workloads. Ocean for Apache Spark is now available in preview for AWS customers.

 

Spot Ocean Continuous Delivery (CD)

Also, part of the Spot Ocean suite, Spot Ocean CD extends Spot by NetApp’s core technologies with a solution for easy, reliable delivery of cloud-native applications on Kubernetes. Available for private preview with AWS customers in mid-December, Spot Ocean CD makes it easy to quickly and reliably execute deployments with integrated and automated continuous verification to give developers full confidence in their deployments.

 

Together with Spot Ocean serverless infrastructure, these products make up the expanded Spot Ocean suite, bringing intelligent automation and optimization to cloud-native infrastructure and workloads on Kubernetes.

 

CloudCheckr Well-Architected Readiness Advisor

CloudCheckr, recently acquired by NetApp, complements the Spot product portfolio to expand Spot by NetApp’s financial operations (FinOps) capabilities. Spot by NetApp today announced the release of CloudCheckr Well-Architected Readiness Advisor, which helps managed service providers (MSPs) streamline the process of delivering AWS Well-Architected Reviews and helps to ensure that AWS customers are in compliance with the AWS Well-Architected Framework for optimization of cloud cost, security, operations, performance and reliability.

 

The Well-Architected Readiness Advisor is available on the CloudCheckr CMx platform.

 

Spot Security

Spot Security enables customers to quickly detect, prioritize and help mitigate the most serious security threats and risks within cloud infrastructure. Spot Security is now available in private preview, starting with AWS customers.

 

“Getting applications to the cloud is only the first step in the cloud journey,” said Amiram Shachar, Vice President and General Manager of Spot by NetApp. “Realizing the promise of cloud requires a holistic approach to operating within the cloud, an approach that addresses cost, resource management, optimization and security. Our growing portfolio delivers a compelling suite of solutions for cloud operations that let organizations focus on their applications rather than on infrastructure.”

 

Additional Resources:

About NetApp

NetApp is a global, cloud-led, data-centric software company that empowers organizations to lead with data in the age of accelerated digital transformation. The company provides systems, software and cloud services that enable them to run their applications optimally from data center to cloud, whether they are developing in the cloud, moving to the cloud, or creating their own cloudlike experiences on premises. With solutions that perform across diverse environments, NetApp helps organizations build their own data fabric and securely deliver the right data, services and applications to the right people—anytime, anywhere. Learn more at www.netapp.com or follow us on Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, and Instagram.

NETAPP, the NETAPP logo, and the marks listed at www.netapp.com/TM are trademarks of NetApp, Inc. Other company and product names may be trademarks of their respective owners.

#NetApp

Grade-A Commercial Complex HDH Centre Completed International Prestigious Home Appliances Brand Bosch Flagship Store Among the Firsts to Move in

HONG KONG SAR – Media OutReach – 2 December 2021 – H Development Holdings Limited (H Development, or the Group) is pleased to announce the completion of HDH Centre, its headquarters commercial complex located at 1 Irving Street in Causeway Bay, in December 2021. Boasting a rich array of outstanding qualities, HDH Centre has already secured occupancy from world-renowned premium brands. Among the first tenants is Bosch, the prestigious German home appliances brand with over a century history, who will relocate its flagship store from Central to HDH Centre.

 

The 25-storey HDH Centre has a total construction area of approximately 82,000 ft2. The 1/F will be the Bosch Home Appliances showroom, 3-8/F are dedicated for premium food and beverage outlets, and 11-25/F are Grade-A offices with premium facilities for high level of privacy, open view and high-ceiling, making it ideal for information technology, medical, beauty, professional consultancy, and financial services and business. A rare feature in the market, 21-22/F is designed as a duplex which is ideal for enterprise headquarters. HDH Centre also provides professional management services, and tenants enjoy dedicated parking space.

 

For Bosch, moving its showroom from Central to Causeway Bay and revamping with a new conceptual image, is a strategic move to tap into the younger high-spender markets. Spokesperson for Bosch Home Appliances says, “A leading European brand for home appliances, Bosch is always striving for innovation and winning numerous awards from independent product testing. We place great emphasis on the Hong Kong market, hence we are very selective when considering the new location for our Hong Kong flagship store. HDH Centre is a new completed complex with stylish architectural design. It is conveniently located at the heart of Hong Kong’s commercial and entertainment hub where customers with high purchasing power and exquisite taste are. A mere three-minutes walk from Causeway Bay MTR Station, convenient transport means a high number of visitors from time to time. Relocating our showroom to Causeway Bay puts us in a better position to reach our targeted premium customers. Bosch flagship store will occupy the whole first floor of HDH Centre. Our eye-catching signage and location are not only attractive for new customers, but also convenient for our loyal ones. The flagship store will provide a spacious environment for customers to experience the premium German quality, technology and easy-to-use appliances from Bosch.”

 

The mastermind behind the redevelopment project which turned a hotel into a Grade A commercial complex, is H Development Chairman, Mr. Eric Ng. “HDH Centre is our flagship showcase for 2021 – a Grade A class commercial complex located at the heart of Causeway Bay and primed to become a new landmark in the community. We are thrilled to welcome world-renowned home appliances brand Bosch as one of our first tenants, as it enhances HDH Centre’s premium positioning. The redevelopment project took five years from planning to completion. We assembled a team of experts from world-class architects Ronald Lu and Partners, interior designer Mr. Steve Leung, and lighting consultant Mr. Tino Kwan, to lead this project’s architecture, interior space and lighting design. With top-notch hardware complemented by customer-centric and professional services by our property management team, our clients, tenants and restaurant patrons will enjoy a full-service premium experience at the HDH Centre.”

 

HDH Centre’s upscale working space and impressive lobby design incorporated with geometrical shapes and lines, matching with different materials and special lighting to enhances the comfortability and agility of the environment as well as its elegance. Every element in the lobby harmoniously blend-in together – on the walls between the reception and the elevators for example, the lines, shapes and lighting, as well as the finishing style and materials create a professional, vibrant and energetic atmosphere, which creates an ideal working space that is a human-centric, stylish and inspirational.

 

Mr. Ng says, “The core business of H Development is property investment and development, with a diverse portfolio of investment projects. Looking forward, the Group is optimistic about the market and potential of Causeway Bay and Tsim Sha Tsui areas. We hope HDH Centre and other commercial buildings and commercial projects will inject more diversity into these two already-flourishing communities.” 

#HDevelopment

New Covered Compression Latch from Southco Enhances Safety And Reduces Maintenance Errors

HONG KONG SAR – Media OutReach – 2 December 2021 – Southco Asia Ltd., a subsidiary of Southco Inc., a leading global provider of engineered access solutions such as locks, latches, captive fasteners, electronic access solutions and hinges/ positioning technology, has expanded its line of VISE ACTION® Compression Latches with a new covered version that allows the operator to identify whether the latch is open or closed. Southco’s E3 VISE ACTION® Compression Latch with Bi-Stable Cover is designed with a cover that pops open when latch is not secure, providing visual indication of latch status. This new offering expands the line of MAKE SAFETY VISIBLE BY SOUTHCO™ products, which provide visual indication for improving safety and monitoring access in a wide variety of applications.

E3 VISE ACTION® Compression Latch with Bi-Stable Cover

 

Southco’s standard E3 VISE ACTION® Compression Latch has been modified to work with a special cover that is installed on top of the latch at the time of assembly. The cover includes a bi-stable hinge that permits the cover to be fully opened or fully closed only. When the latch is not fully closed, the cover cannot be closed and pops open, indicating that the latch is not secure. When the latch is fully closed, the cover can also be fully closed, providing clear visual indication that the latch is secure.

 

By allowing operators to easily detect latch status, the E3 VISE ACTION® Compression Latch with Bi-Stable Cover improves efficiency, enhances safety and reduces maintenance errors. Designed for heavy use, the cover helps to protect the E3 VISE ACTION® Compression Latch from dust and moisture, making it a suitable choice for outdoor, high vibration or corrosive environments. Tested to DIN EN 45545 and DIN EN 61373, Southco’s E3 VISE ACTION® Compression Latch series complies with rail industry standards for fire resistance and vibration.

 

Commercial Product Manager Jonathan Coulter adds, “Due to their relatively small size and symmetrical shape, it is hard to see if a typical round headed compression latch is securely fastened from any distance. The E3 VISE ACTION® Compression Latch with Bi-Stable Cover provides clear visual feedback of whether a panel is fully closed, or not closed. This helps prevent security and safety risks for end users operating and maintaining rail, lighting and industrial equipment.”

 

For more information about the latest E3 VISE ACTION® Compression Latch, please visit www.southco.com/E3-Bi-Stable.

About Southco

Southco, Inc. is the leading global designer and manufacturer of engineered access solutions. From quality and performance to aesthetics and ergonomics, we understand that first impressions are lasting impressions in product design. For over 70 years, Southco has helped the world’s most recognized brands create value for their customers with innovative access solutions designed to enhance the touch points of their products in transportation and industrial applications, medical equipment, data centers and more. With unrivalled engineering resources, innovative products and a dedicated global team, Southco delivers the broadest portfolio of premium access solutions available to equipment designers throughout the world.

Southco Asia Limited

2401, Tower 2, Ever Gain Plaza

88 Container Port Road, Kwai Chung

Hong Kong

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Chubb Appoints Tulio Puente as Division Head of International Personal Lines in Singapore

SINGAPORE – Media OutReach – 2 December 2021 – Chubb announced today that Tulio Puente has been appointed as Division Head of International Personal Lines (IPL) in Singapore, effective 22 November 2021. Mr. Puente will report to Scott Simpson, Country President for Chubb in Singapore.

 

In his new role, Mr. Puente will be responsible for the overall growth and management of Singapore’s IPL division which includes the following lines of business: Personal Risk Services which provides coverage for fine homes and valuables, Residential insurance, and Specialty coverage such as personal cyber and gadgets protection. He will continue to deepen existing and forge new affinity partnerships, as well as drive multi-channel distribution opportunities.

Mr. Puente joined Chubb in 2014 and has held various roles with increasing responsibility and in Latin America and the Asia Pacific. His career with the company includes experience in underwriting, portfolio management and business control for Consumer Lines, data analytics for the Direct Marketing team and most recently, underwriting for Speciality Personal Lines.

 

Prior to joining Chubb, Mr. Puente worked as an Economist for the Central Bank of Mexico, and in the telecommunications industry in China.

 

On Mr. Puente’s appointment, Mr. Simpson commented, “Tulio is a highly strategic and forward-thinker, focused on customer-centricity to deliver tailored solutions and best-in-class service to our partners and customers. Given his rich experience in the Consumer Lines business coupled with his keen business acumen, I am confident in his capabilities to propel our IPL business forward and value-add to our local team, business partners and their customers”.

 

About Chubb Singapore

Chubb is the world’s largest publicly traded property and casualty insurer. Chubb Insurance Singapore Limited, via acquisitions by its predecessor companies, has been present in Singapore since 1948. Chubb in Singapore provides underwriting and risk management expertise for all major classes of general insurance. The company’s product offerings include Financial Lines, Casualty, Property, Marine, Industry Practices as well as Group insurance solutions for large corporates, multinationals, small and medium-sized businesses. In addition, to meet the evolving needs of consumers, it also offers a suite of tailored Accident & Health and Personal & Specialty insurance options through a multitude of distribution channels including bancassurance, independent distribution partners and affinity partnerships.

Over the years, Chubb in Singapore has established strong client relationships by delivering responsive service, developing innovative products and providing market leadership built on financial strength.

More information can be found at www.chubb.com/sg.

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CUHK Business School Research Finds Rents in Asia-Pacific Fell Dramatically but Property Prices Stayed Strong During the Pandemic

HONG KONG SAR – Media OutReach – 2 December 2021 – Empty office buildings, hotel rooms and shopping malls – these are the facts of life in the post-pandemic new normal. They are also the results of social distancing measures as well as government-imposed lockdowns implemented around the world to lessen the spread of COVID-19, the effects of which have rippled across real estate markets in Asia. It is with this in mind that a recent study found that property prices in the overall market for much of the Asian Pacific region remained stable. However, within the different segments of the real estate, the market witnessed a refocusing from some investors towards strategies involving deployment of capital towards sectors of industry that actually benefited from COVID-19.

Source: iStock

 

The study The COVID-19 Pandemic and Commercial Property Rent Dynamics was co-written by Dr. Ervi Liusman and Prof. Desmond Tsang, Lecturer and Associate Professor, respectively, in the School of Hotel and Tourism Management at The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) Business School. Based on data from global real estate consultancy JLL, the study examined rental figures and property prices of 38 cities in 12 countries and jurisdictions in the Asia-Pacific region, including Hong Kong, Singapore, Tokyo and Kuala Lumpur. The property sectors included office, retail, industrial and residential. They then analysed the trends in rents and property prices in the regions.

 

According to the study, rents of properties across these sectors fell approximately 15 percent on average across the Asia-Pacific region in the first six months of 2020, coinciding with the beginning of the pandemic. Office rentals recorded moderate declines of approximately 14 percent. However, the most significant and continued declines in rent was found in retail properties, such as shopping malls, which fell over 30 percent in the period. The study found a negative relationship between the number of COVID-19 confirmed cases and deaths and market rent in the region. Interestingly, property prices in the overall market did not fall despite the drastic drop in rents.

 

Flight to Quality

According to the study results and anecdotal evidence, overall property prices in the Asia Pacific remained strong despite the surge in COVID-19 cases with less focus on retail investment and more and of a focus into the residential and industrial properties sectors.

 

At the start of the pandemic, the researchers say the social distancing measures and lockdowns implemented in response to the pandemic forced people to stay at home and consequently led to a boom in e-commerce at the expense of demand in physical retail stores. Many stores also had to close down and without stable rental income, and landlords or investors became more likely to sell retail properties in their portfolios. This simultaneous movement in both sides of supply and demand meant retail real estate prices saw a significant drop.

 

In response, investors redistributed their capital allocation strategies within the overall property market, taking more defensive strategies amid the pandemic, according to the researchers. That is, they reallocated funds to sectors that can better withstand the uncertainties brought by the pandemic, such as by investing in data centres, factories and warehouses. Given the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic, it was natural for many investors to have concerns about the eventual prospect of the retail property market, which is why they chose to put their money in other property sectors.

 

“What we are seeing could be a ‘flight to quality’ phenomenon, where investors are abandoning risky assets such as retail properties and choosing to invest in safer options, like data centres or warehouses,” says Dr. Liusman. “Demand for real estate is a derived demand, which means it’s based on demand for something else, and people still need space for production and consumption. With consumers shifting their purchases to e-commerce, online companies will need space to run their businesses as well as for logistics, hence the rosier prospects for industrial as well as other types of non-retail property.”

 

She adds that supply within the industrial property sector has remained tight with robust demand. E-commerce platforms, technology and telecommunication companies, food and drinks operators and pharmaceutical companies – all of which require industrial warehousing and factory space to run their operations – were likely to have been the driving force for the strong demand witnessed in this sector.

Government Intervention

To deal with the unprecedented crisis brought by the COVID-19 pandemic, governments worldwide have implemented different support programmes to restore their economies, as shown in a report published by the International Monetary Fund.

 

The researchers investigated the fiscal stimuli packages carried out by governments in the Asia-Pacific countries. For instance, China announced an estimated 4.9 trillion Chinese yuan in fiscal measures, including tax relief and reduced social security contributions. The researchers examined how different stimuli affected different markets in the Asia Pacific region.

 

They found that government fiscal stimuli had a positive effect on reducing declines in property rents. However, they also discovered that this positive effect had already worn off by the time the announced measures got around to being implemented. They explained that government fiscal stimulus packages seem to be effective in mitigating the negative impact of the pandemic but this seemed to work at least as much through helping to restore confidence in the property market as the financial aspect of the measures themselves.

 

“It would seem that it is the announcements of those grand schemes of fiscal stimuli that weakened the fall in rents. What this means is that the governments’ initial response may be what matters more in restoring investor confidence than what the governments actually do to help the economies,” Prof. Tsang says.

 

Hunting for Bargains

The researchers believe that their research findings can provide valuable implications on how the pandemic has affected the global property environment. “Due to the diverse nature of real estate, the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic varied significantly across different regions and sectors. While some property sectors like retail and hotels may have been negatively impacted by the pandemic, other sectors were relatively stable,” Dr. Liusman says. “As an investor, it is important to examine the market demand for a particular sector when selecting the investment portfolio.”

 

Dr. Liusman notes that while periods of economic crises generally presented good opportunities for investors to bargain-hunt, during the current pandemic property owners in the overall market shied away from slashing prices to offload their assets. She explains that one reason may be due to the government fiscal stimulus packages helping to restore investor confidence. Another possibility is perhaps because those building owners had deep pockets and did not feel an urgency to sell their properties.

 

Commenting on future research directions, the researchers said further research could be focused on how the property market has reacted to the recovery from the pandemic. Additional research may also consider looking into any potential relapse in the property market due to the discovery of variants of the COVID-19 virus.

 

Reference:

Allan R, Liusman E, Lu T, Tsang D. The COVID-19 Pandemic and Commercial Property Rent Dynamics. Journal of Risk and Financial Management. 2021; 14(8):360. https://doi.org/10.3390/jrfm14080360

 

This article was first published in the China Business Knowledge (CBK) website by CUHK Business School: https://bit.ly/3oU8fiG.

 

About CUHK Business School

CUHK Business School comprises two schools – Accountancy and Hotel and Tourism Management – and four departments – Decision Sciences and Managerial Economics, Finance, Management and Marketing. Established in Hong Kong in 1963, it is the first business school to offer BBA, MBA and Executive MBA programmes in the region. Today, CUHK Business School offers 9 undergraduate programmes and 18 graduate programmes including MBA, EMBA, Master, MSc, MPhil and Ph.D. The School currently has more than 4,500 undergraduate and postgraduate students from 20+ countries/regions.

In the Financial Times Executive MBA ranking 2021, CUHK EMBA is ranked 19th in the world. In FT‘s 2021 Global MBA Ranking, CUHK MBA is ranked 48th. CUHK Business School has the largest number of business alumni (40,000+) among universities/business schools in Hong Kong – many of whom are key business leaders.

More information is available at http://www.bschool.cuhk.edu.hk or by connecting with CUHK Business School on:

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