(Yicai) Nov. 22 -- Kuaishou Technology’s shares rose after the competitor of Douyin, TikTok's sister app in China, turned a profit in the third quarter thanks to significant growth in its online marketing, e-commerce, and live-streaming businesses.

Kuaishou [HKG: 1024] closed 2.9 percent higher at HKD60.20 (USD7.72) a share in Hong Kong today, after jumping by as much as 5.4 percent at one point. The stock is down 13 percent this year.

Adjusted net profit was CNY3.2 billion (USD440 million) in the three months ended Sept. 30, versus an adjusted net loss of CNY670 million (USD94.2 million) a year earlier, according to the firm’s earnings report released yesterday. Revenue gained 21 percent to CNY28 billion (USD3.9 billion).

It is Kuaishou’s second straight quarterly net profit since the Beijing-based video-sharing and live-streaming platform operator listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange in February 2021.

“We continued to expand our business and increase our profits in the third quarter of 2023, led by strong revenue growth and improved ROI [return on investment] in our core businesses, along with our strategic emphasis on operating efficiency,” co-founder and Chief Executive Officer Cheng Yixiao said in a statement.

Income from online marketing services jumped 27 percent to CNY14.7 billion in the third quarter, that from live-streaming rose 8.6 percent to about CNY9.7 billion (USD1.4 billion), while revenue from other services, including e-commerce, climbed 37 percent to CNY3.5 billion.

Kuaishou’s paid mini-dramas had the biggest growth, Cheng said later on an earnings conference call. This was mainly because of its constant optimization of services relevant to paid mini-dramas and the rapid increase in the number of these dramas brought about by policy support for platforms, Cheng noted.

The average number of daily active users rose 6.4 percent to 387 million, and average monthly active users jumped 9.4 percent to 685 million. Revenue from overseas business more than tripled to CNY652 million (USD91.5 million), while general operating losses narrowed by 62 percent. 

Advertising spending in the paid mini-drama segment has increased each month this year, with quarterly investment quadrupling year on year and rising 50 percent month on month, according to Cheng. Moreover, spending on mini-games soared almost 40 percent, he added. 

Over the annual Double 11 shopping festival, the gross merchandise value of presales soared 84 percent from a year ago, Cheng pointed out. He said the domestic e-commerce sector has not yet become a zero-sum game, and the ceiling will continue to rise, with Kuaishou playing an important role in that.

Editor: Martin Kadiev