Elastic Reports Strong Second Quarter Fiscal 2021 Financial Results

Q2 Revenue of $144.9 million, Up 43% year-over-year

Q2 SaaS Revenue of $37.4 million, Up 81% year-over-year

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Elastic (NYSE: ESTC) (“Elastic”), the company behind Elasticsearch and the Elastic Stack, announced strong results for its second quarter of fiscal 2021 (ended October 31, 2020).

Second Quarter Fiscal 2021 Financial Highlights

Total revenue was $144.9 million, an increase of 43% year-over-year, or 40% on a constant currency basis
SaaS revenue was $37.4 million, an increase of 81% year-over-year, or 79% on a constant currency basis
Calculated billings was $177.7 million, an increase of 42% year-over-year, or 39% on a constant currency basis
Deferred revenue was $309.2 million, an increase of 54% year-over-year
GAAP operating loss was $28.4 million; GAAP operating margin was -20%
Non-GAAP operating loss was $1.7 million; non-GAAP operating margin was -1%
GAAP net loss per share was $0.34; non-GAAP net loss per share was $0.03
Operating cash flow was -$17.3 million with free cash flow of -$18.6 million
Cash and cash equivalents were $349.0 million as of October 31, 2020

“Elastic delivered excellent results in the second quarter,” said Shay Banon, founder and chief executive officer of Elastic. “We are innovating across our three solutions built on a single stack, expanding our relationships with key partners, and empowering our customers to drive outcomes through data, insights, and action.”

Second Quarter Fiscal 2021 Key Metrics and Recent Business Highlights

Key Customer Metrics:

Total subscription customer count was over 12,900, compared to over 12,100 in Q1 FY21, and over 9,700 in Q2 FY20
Total customer count with Annual Contract Value (ACV) greater than $100,000 was over 650, compared to over 630 in Q1 FY21, and over 525 in Q2 FY20
Subscription revenue represented 93% of total revenue
Net Expansion Rate continued to be greater than 130%

Product Releases and Other Business Highlights:

Elastic released version 7.10 of the Elastic Stack. Included in this release were innovations across Elastic Enterprise Search, Observability, and Security solutions that optimize search, enhance performance monitoring capabilities, and enrich security functionalities.

Foundational features in 7.10 that can be leveraged across all three solutions include a beta release of searchable snapshots to help customers store and search more data while maintaining control over cost and performance; the general availability of Kibana Lens to enable users to visualize data faster with drag-and-drop ease; and dashboard drill downs to web apps in Kibana to make it easier for users to take actions based on the data insights.

Expanded capabilities on Elastic include:

Elastic Enterprise Search
- Deepened access to more content sources on Workplace Search with the addition of connectors for Slack and Salesforce sandboxes
- Enhanced document-level security support for Workplace Search connectors to manage access to Sharepoint Online, OneDrive, and Microsoft 365
- Added single sign-on to App Search and Workplace Search in Elastic Cloud so users can more easily sign into accounts using Elastic Cloud credentials and eliminate the need to manage multiple usernames and passwords
Elastic Observability
- Launched user experience monitoring in Kibana to measure, monitor, and understand the performance and quality of websites
- Expanded synthetic monitoring capabilities to test and optimize websites with multistep journey checks in Elastic Uptime
- Introduced one-click anomaly detections to detect common infrastructure issues with zero manual setup, making it easier to keep tabs on the health of thousands of hosts or containers
Elastic Security
- Lowered mean time to detect (MTTD) and reduced alert fatigue with event query language (EQL) correlation and indicator match rules
- Expanded protections for cloud and remote users with prebuilt detections for Azure, Google Cloud, and Zoom
- Extended visibility across fast-changing attack surfaces with new integrations including Cisco Umbrella, Juniper SRX, Microsoft 365 Defender, SIP, and Zoom
Elastic Cloud
- Announced improvements that allow users to optimize for any use case using new solution-specific deployments, audit access to data using audit logs, and upgrade more easily
- Added three new regions: AWS Mumbai, Azure Iowa, and Azure New South Wales, now providing availability of Elastic Cloud across 42 regions
- Introduced integrated billing for Elastic Cloud on Microsoft Azure making it simpler for customers to buy and scale for their Elastic use cases
Other Business Highlights
- Held first-ever virtual ElasticON Global event with more than 25,000 registrations and 300 sessions, and featured talks with platinum event sponsors Google Cloud and Microsoft
- Delivered nine regional virtual ElasticON events and exhibited at Black Hat USA and KubeCon North America reaching tens of thousands of developers, security professionals, and technical leaders
- Launched Operation Giving Back, a partnership with VetsInTech to provide training, mentorship, and professional development resources to active duty military and veterans
- Recognized as “best place to work for women” in three categories by the created-by-women-for-women workplace review site Fairygodboss

Financial Outlook

The Company is providing the following guidance: For the third quarter of fiscal 2021 (ending January 31, 2021):

Total revenue is expected to be between $145 million and $147 million
Non-GAAP operating margin is expected to be between -8.5% and -7.5%
Non-GAAP net loss per share is expected to be between $0.16 and $0.14, assuming between 88.5 million and 89.5 million weighted average ordinary shares outstanding

For fiscal 2021 (ending April 30, 2021):

Total revenue is expected to be between $568 million and $572 million
Non-GAAP operating margin is expected to be between -7.0% and -6.0%
Non-GAAP net loss per share is expected to be between $0.40 and $0.32, assuming between 87 million and 89 million weighted average ordinary shares outstanding

We continue to believe it is prudent to expect some near-term business headwinds as the economic impact from the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic further unfolds. As such, our guidance includes the expected impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on our business and results of operations based on information available to us today.

See the section titled “Forward-Looking Statements” below for information on the factors that could cause our actual results to differ materially. A reconciliation of non-GAAP guidance measures to corresponding GAAP measures is not available on a forward-looking basis without unreasonable effort due to the uncertainty regarding, and the potential variability of, many of the costs and expenses that may be incurred in the future. These items necessary to reconcile such non-GAAP measures could be material and have a significant impact on the Company’s results computed in accordance with GAAP.

Conference Call and Webcast

Elastic’s executive management team will host a conference call today at 2:00 p.m. PT/ 5:00 p.m. ET to discuss the Company’s financial results and business outlook. A live audio webcast of the conference call will be available on Elastic’s Investor Relations website at ir.elastic.co. Slides will accompany the webcast. The replay of the webcast and slides will be available for two months.

About Elastic

Elastic is a search company built on a free and open heritage. Anyone can use Elastic products and solutions to get started quickly and frictionlessly. Elastic offers three solutions for enterprise search, observability, and security, built on one technology stack that can be deployed anywhere. From finding documents to monitoring infrastructure to hunting for threats, Elastic makes data usable in real time and at scale. Founded in 2012, Elastic is a distributed company with Elasticians around the globe. Learn more at elastic.co.

Elastic and associated marks are trademarks or registered trademarks of Elastic N.V. and its subsidiaries. All other company and product names may be trademarks of their respective owners.

Use of Non-GAAP Financial Measures

Reconciliations of non-GAAP financial measures to Elastic’s financial results as determined in accordance with U.S. GAAP are included at the end of this press release following the accompanying financial data. For a description of these non-GAAP financial measures, including the reasons management uses each measure, please see the section of this press release titled “About Non-GAAP Financial Measures.”

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements that involve substantial risk and uncertainties, which include, but are not limited to, our expected financial results for the fiscal quarter ending January 31, 2021 and the fiscal year ending April 30, 2021, our expectations regarding the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, our assessments of the strength of our solutions and products, the effectiveness of our go-to-market strategy, including by expanding our relationships with our partners, and our expectations regarding the benefits of our investments. These forward-looking statements are subject to the safe harbor provisions under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Our expectations and beliefs in light of currently available information regarding these matters may not materialize. Actual outcomes and results may differ materially from those contemplated by these forward-looking statements due to uncertainties, risks, and changes in circumstances, including but not limited to those related to: the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the macroeconomic environment, on our business, operations, hiring and financial results, and on businesses of our customers and partners, including their spending priorities, the effect of lockdowns, restrictions and new regulations; our future financial performance, including our expectations regarding our revenue, cost of revenue, gross profit or gross margin, operating expenses (which include changes in sales and marketing, research and development and general and administrative expenses), and our ability to achieve and maintain future profitability; our ability to continue to deliver and improve our offerings and develop new offerings, including security-related product and SaaS offerings; customer acceptance and purchase of our existing offerings and new offerings, including the expansion and adoption of our SaaS offerings; our inability to realize value from investments in the business, including R&D investments; our ability to maintain and expand our user and customer base; the impact of foreign currency exchange rate and interest rate fluctuations on our results; our international expansion strategy; our operating results and cash flows; our beliefs and objectives for future operations; the sufficiency of our capital resources; our ability to successfully execute our go-to-market strategy, including by expanding our relationships with our partners, and expand in our existing markets and into new markets, and our ability to forecast customer retention and expansion; and general market, political, economic and business conditions (including developments and volatility arising from the COVID-19 pandemic).

Any additional or unforeseen effect from the COVID-19 pandemic may exacerbate these risks. Additional risks and uncertainties that could cause actual outcomes and results to differ materially are included in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”), including our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended April 30, 2020 and any subsequent reports filed with the SEC. SEC filings are available on the Investor Relations section of Elastic’s website at ir.elastic.co and the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov. Elastic assumes no obligation to, and does not currently intend to, update any such forward-looking statements, except as required by law.

Contact Information

Anthony Luscri

Elastic Investor Relations

ir@elastic.co
(650) 695-1055

Lisa Boughner

Elastic Corporate Communications

lisa.boughner@elastic.co


Elastic N.V. CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS (amounts in thousands, except share and per share amounts) (Unaudited)

	Three Months Ended October 31,				Six Months Ended October 31,
	2020		2019		2020		2019
Revenue
License – self-managed	$	15,514	$	12,272	$	30,393	$	22,179
Subscription – self-managed and SaaS	118,695		79,407		225,158		151,890
Total subscription revenue	134,209		91,679		255,551		174,069
Professional services	10,685		9,427		18,213		16,747
Total revenue	144,894		101,106		273,764		190,816
Cost of revenue
Cost of license – self-managed	347		158		693		255
Cost of subscription – self-managed and SaaS	29,148		19,741		55,038		37,636
Total cost of revenue – subscription	29,495		19,899		55,731		37,891
Cost of professional services	8,953		8,862		17,548		17,121
Total cost of revenue	38,448		28,761		73,279		55,012
Gross profit	106,446		72,345		200,485		135,804
Operating expenses
Research and development	46,688		38,478		92,366		73,660
Sales and marketing	64,474		54,020		120,625		106,031
General and administrative	23,705		31,808		45,434		50,376
Total operating expenses	134,867		124,306		258,425		230,067
Operating loss	(28,421)		(51,961)		(57,940)		(94,263)
Other income (expense), net ⁽¹⁾	(84)		1,684		10,801		2,615
Loss before income taxes	(28,505)		(50,277)		(47,139)		(91,648)
Provision for (benefit from) income taxes	653		(304)		1,020		94
Net loss	$	(29,158)	$	(49,973)	$	(48,159)	$	(91,742)
Net loss per share attributable to ordinary shareholders, basic and diluted	$	(0.34)	$	(0.64)	$	(0.56)	$	(1.20)
Weighted-average shares used to compute net loss per share attributable to ordinary shareholders, basic and diluted	86,373,166		77,772,406		85,275,474		76,202,865

⁽¹⁾		Includes a foreign currency transaction loss of $0.2 million and a foreign currency transaction gain of $10.6 million for the three and six months ended October 31, 2020, respectively, arising primarily from foreign exchange remeasurement of intercompany balances. Intercompany balances are eliminated on consolidation.

Elastic N.V. CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS (amounts in thousands, except share and per share amounts) (Unaudited)

Assets	As of October 31, 2020			As of April 30, 2020
Current assets:
Cash and cash equivalents	$	348,986		$	297,081
Restricted cash	2,325			2,308
Accounts receivable, net of allowance for credit losses of $1,505 and $1,247 as of October 31, 2020 and April 30, 2020, respectively	132,523			128,690
Deferred contract acquisition costs	28,487			19,537
Prepaid expenses and other current assets	31,805			32,623
Total current assets	544,126			480,239
Property and equipment, net	8,004			7,760
Goodwill	198,196			197,877
Operating lease right-of-use assets	30,277			32,783
Intangible assets, net	43,362			50,455
Deferred contract acquisition costs, non-current	35,996			24,012
Deferred tax assets	3,685			3,164
Other assets	3,915			7,621
Total assets	$	867,561		$	803,911
Liabilities and Shareholders’ Equity
Current liabilities:
Accounts payable	$	9,213		$	11,485
Accrued expenses and other liabilities	21,824			22,210
Accrued compensation and benefits	46,975			48,409
Operating lease liabilities	7,863			7,639
Deferred revenue	262,257			231,681
Total current liabilities	348,132			321,424
Deferred revenue, non-current	46,959			28,021
Operating lease liabilities, non-current	25,032			27,827
Other liabilities, non-current	4,781			12,992
Total liabilities	424,904			390,264
Commitments and contingencies
Shareholders’ equity:
Convertible preference shares, €0.01 par value; 165,000,000 shares authorized, 0 shares issued and outstanding as of October 31, 2020 and April 30, 2020	—			—
Ordinary shares, par value €0.01 per share: 165,000,000 shares authorized; 87,204,991 shares issued and outstanding as of October 31, 2020 and 82,856,978 shares issued and outstanding as of April 30, 2020	908			856
Treasury stock	(369		)	(369		)
Additional paid-in capital	986,075			898,788
Accumulated other comprehensive loss	(11,914		)	(1,377		)
Accumulated deficit	(532,043		)	(484,251		)
Total shareholders’ equity	442,657			413,647
Total liabilities and shareholders’ equity	$	867,561		$	803,911

Elastic N.V. CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS (amounts in thousands) (Unaudited)

	Three Months Ended October 31,						Six Months Ended October 31,
	2020			2019			2020			2019
Cash flows from operating activities
Net loss ⁽¹⁾	$	(29,158	)	$	(49,973	)	$	(48,159	)	$	(91,742	)
Adjustments to reconcile net loss to cash provided by (used in) operating activities:
Depreciation and amortization	4,310			2,050			8,566			3,338
Amortization of deferred contract acquisition costs	9,160			7,198			18,173			13,921
Non-cash operating lease cost	1,760			1,667			3,434			3,014
Stock-based compensation expense	21,487			14,416			40,078			27,187
Non-cash acquisition expense settled with shares	—			8,834			—			8,834
Deferred income taxes	81			(690		)	(286		)	(671		)
Foreign currency transaction gains ⁽²⁾	(874		)	—			(10,924		)	—
Other	(11		)	323			(11		)	323
Changes in operating assets and liabilities:
Accounts receivable, net	(45,148		)	(18,678		)	63			4,850
Deferred contract acquisition costs	(21,409		)	(11,510		)	(37,872		)	(17,025		)
Prepaid expenses and other current assets	759			(3,389		)	1,100			(819		)
Other assets	2,347			851			4,040			1,906
Accounts payable	(2,026		)	1,916			(2,638		)	4,204
Accrued expenses and other liabilities	4,038			6,238			(1,061		)	3,372
Accrued compensation and benefits	6,513			18,031			(691		)	16,214
Operating lease liabilities	(1,819		)	(1,505		)	(3,535		)	(2,788		)
Deferred revenue	32,701			24,511			34,432			24,478
Net cash provided by (used in) operating activities ⁽³⁾	(17,289		)	290			4,709			(1,404		)
Cash flows from investing activities
Purchases of property and equipment	(1,277		)	(1,645		)	(1,656		)	(3,230		)
Business acquisition, net of cash acquired	—			(24,373		)	—			(24,373		)
Other	1,320			—			1,320			—
Net cash provided by (used in) investing activities	43			(26,018		)	(336		)	(27,603		)
Cash flows from financing activities
Proceeds from issuance of ordinary shares upon exercise of stock options	15,978			19,455			45,230			39,568
Payment of withholding taxes related to acquisition expense settled in shares	—			(2,834		)	—			(2,834		)
Repayment of notes payable	—			(30		)	—			(60		)
Net cash provided by financing activities	15,978			16,591			45,230			36,674
Effect of exchange rate changes on cash, cash equivalents, and restricted cash	(153		)	(728		)	2,319			(399		)
Net increase (decrease) in cash, cash equivalents, and restricted cash	(1,421		)	(9,865		)	51,922			7,268
Cash, cash equivalents, and restricted cash, beginning of period	352,732			317,413			299,389			300,280
Cash, cash equivalents, and restricted cash, end of period	$	351,311		$	307,548		$	351,311		$	307,548

⁽¹⁾		Includes foreign currency transaction gains of $0.9 million and $10.9 million for the three and six months ended October 31, 2020, respectively, arising primarily from foreign exchange remeasurement of intercompany balances. Intercompany balances are eliminated on consolidation.
⁽²⁾		Removes the foreign currency transaction gains of $0.9 million and $10.9 million for the three and six months ended October 31, 2020, respectively, included in net loss.
⁽³⁾		Unaffected by foreign currency transaction gains.

Elastic N.V. REVENUE BY TYPE (amounts in thousands, except percentages) (Unaudited)

	Three Months Ended October 31,								Six Months Ended October 31,
	2020				2019				2020				2019
	Amount		% of Total Revenue		Amount		% of Total Revenue		Amount		% of Total Revenue		Amount		% of Total Revenue
Self-managed subscription	$	96,781	67	%	$	71,030	71	%	$	185,496	67	%	$	135,842	71	%
License	15,514		11	%	12,272		12	%	30,393		11	%	22,179		11	%
Subscription	81,267		56	%	58,758		59	%	155,103		56	%	113,663		60	%
SaaS	37,428		26	%	20,649		20	%	70,055		26	%	38,227		20	%
Total subscription revenue	134,209		93	%	91,679		91	%	255,551		93	%	174,069		91	%
Professional services	10,685		7	%	9,427		9	%	18,213		7	%	16,747		9	%
Total revenue	$	144,894	100	%	$	101,106	100	%	$	273,764	100	%	$	190,816	100	%

Elastic N.V. RECONCILIATION OF GAAP TO NON-GAAP DATA CALCULATED BILLINGS (amounts in thousands) (Unaudited)

	Three Months Ended October 31,					Six Months Ended October 31,
	2020		2019			2020			2019
Total revenue	$	144,894	$	101,106		$	273,764		$	190,816
Add: Increase in total deferred revenue	32,701		24,511			34,432			24,478
Less: (Increase) decrease in unbilled accounts receivable	151		(362		)	(424		)	(599		)
Calculated billings	$	177,746	$	125,255		$	307,772		$	214,695

Elastic N.V. RECONCILIATION OF GAAP TO NON-GAAP DATA FREE CASH FLOW (amounts in thousands, except percentages) (Unaudited)

	Three Months Ended October 31,								Six Months Ended October 31,
	2020				2019				2020				2019
Net cash provided by (used in) operating activities	$	(17,289	)		$	290			$	4,709			$	(1,404	)
Less: Purchases of property and equipment	(1,277		)		(1,645		)		(1,656		)		(3,230		)
Free cash flow	$	(18,566	)		$	(1,355	)		$	3,053			$	(4,634	)
Net cash provided by (used in) investing activities	$	43			$	(26,018	)		$	(336	)		$	(27,603	)
Net cash provided by financing activities	$	15,978			$	16,591			$	45,230			$	36,674
Net cash provided by (used in) operating activities (as a percentage of total revenue)	(12		)	%	—			%	2			%	—			%
Less: Purchases of property and equipment (as a percentage of total revenue)	(1		)	%	(1		)	%	(1		)	%	(2		)	%
Free cash flow margin	(13		)	%	(1		)	%	1			%	(2		)	%

Elastic N.V. RECONCILIATION OF GAAP TO NON-GAAP DATA (amounts in thousands, except percentages, share and per share amounts) (Unaudited)

	Three Months Ended October 31,								Six Months Ended October 31,
	2020				2019				2020				2019
Gross Profit Reconciliation:
GAAP gross profit	$	106,446			$	72,345			$	200,485			$	135,804
Stock-based compensation expense	2,836				1,584				5,154				3,060
Employer payroll taxes on employee stock transactions	102				252				322				420
Amortization of acquired intangibles	2,109				1,019				4,218				1,652
Non-GAAP gross profit	$	111,493			$	75,200			$	210,179			$	140,936
Gross Margin Reconciliation⁽¹⁾:
GAAP gross margin	73.5			%	71.6			%	73.2			%	71.2			%
Stock-based compensation expense	2.0			%	1.6			%	1.9			%	1.6			%
Employer payroll taxes on employee stock transactions	0.1			%	0.2			%	0.1			%	0.2			%
Amortization of acquired intangibles	1.5			%	1.0			%	1.5			%	0.9			%
Non-GAAP gross margin	76.9			%	74.4			%	76.8			%	73.9			%
Operating Loss Reconciliation:
GAAP operating loss	$	(28,421	)		$	(51,961	)		$	(57,940	)		$	(94,263	)
Stock-based compensation expense	21,487				14,416				40,078				27,187
Employer payroll taxes on employee stock transactions	1,643				3,780				4,751				5,909
Amortization of acquired intangibles	3,542				1,398				7,092				2,060
Acquisition-related expenses	—				13,962				—				16,434
Non-GAAP operating loss	$	(1,749	)		$	(18,405	)		$	(6,019	)		$	(42,673	)
Operating Margin Reconciliation⁽¹⁾:
GAAP operating margin	(19.6		)	%	(51.4		)	%	(21.2		)	%	(49.4		)	%
Stock-based compensation expense	14.8			%	14.3			%	14.6			%	14.2			%
Employer payroll taxes on employee stock transactions	1.1			%	3.7			%	1.7			%	3.1			%
Amortization of acquired intangibles	2.4			%	1.4			%	2.6			%	1.1			%
Acquisition-related expenses	0.0			%	13.8			%	0.0			%	8.6			%
Non-GAAP operating margin	(1.2		)	%	(18.2		)	%	(2.2		)	%	(22.4		)	%
Net Loss Reconciliation:
GAAP net loss	$	(29,158	)		$	(49,973	)		$	(48,159	)		$	(91,742	)
Stock-based compensation expense	21,487				14,416				40,078				27,187
Employer payroll taxes on employee stock transactions	1,643				3,780				4,751				5,909
Amortization of acquired intangibles	3,542				1,398				7,092				2,060
Acquisition-related expenses	—				13,962				—				16,434
Income tax⁽²⁾	(58		)		(757		)		(150		)		(1,114		)
Non-GAAP net income (loss)	$	(2,544	)		$	(17,174	)		$	3,612			$	(41,266	)
Non-GAAP earnings (net loss) per share attributable to ordinary shareholders, basic	$	(0.03	)		$	(0.22	)		$	0.04			$	(0.54	)
Non-GAAP earnings (net loss) per share attributable to ordinary shareholders, diluted	$	(0.03	)		$	(0.22	)		$	0.04			$	(0.54	)
Weighted-average shares used to compute earnings (net loss) per share attributable to ordinary shareholders, basic	86,373,166				77,772,406				85,275,474				76,202,865
Weighted-average shares used to compute earnings (net loss) per share attributable to ordinary shareholders, diluted	86,373,166				77,772,406				96,681,562				76,202,865

Contacts

Anthony Luscri
Elastic Investor Relations

ir@elastic.co
(650) 695-1055

Lisa Boughner
Elastic Corporate Communications

lisa.boughner@elastic.co

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Elastic Reports Strong Second Quarter Fiscal 2021 Financial Results

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