LivePerson(US:LPSN)2022-02-25 04:16Financial Data and Key Metrics Changes - Q4 2021 revenue was $123.8 million, representing a 21% year-over-year growth, and full-year 2021 revenue reached $469.6 million, a 28% increase, marking a record high for the company [6][28] - Adjusted EBITDA loss for Q4 was $4.4 million, significantly better than the expected loss of $19.5 million, indicating a focus on profitable growth [6][29] - Full-year adjusted EBITDA was $29.1 million, equating to a 6.2% adjusted EBITDA margin [7] Business Line Data and Key Metrics Changes - B2B revenue grew 21% year-over-year in Q4, while hosted software revenue increased by 17% year-over-year [39] - Professional services revenue saw a 42% year-over-year growth, and the consumer segment also grew by 21% [39] - Average revenue per customer (ARPU) increased by 31% year-over-year, reaching $610,000 [22] Market Data and Key Metrics Changes - U.S. revenue grew 27% year-over-year, while international revenue increased by 12% [39] - Conversational Cloud volume for AI-based conversations grew by 44% year-over-year, and total messaging conversations increased by 28% year-over-year [9][41] Company Strategy and Development Direction - The company aims to balance growth with profitability, focusing on leveraging its Conversational Cloud platform for various industries, including healthcare [26][27] - Recent acquisitions of VoiceBase and Tenfold are expected to enhance cross-selling opportunities and integrate voice capabilities into the AI offerings [23][42] - The company is expanding into healthcare, leveraging its experience from COVID-19 testing to build a broader healthcare platform [19][21] Management's Comments on Operating Environment and Future Outlook - Management acknowledged the challenges posed by changing consumer behavior and government policies affecting COVID-19 testing, which impacted revenue growth expectations for 2022 [34][36] - Despite these challenges, management remains optimistic about the scalability of the healthcare vertical and the potential for profitable growth [52][97] - The company expects to see a significant improvement in EBITDA by the latter half of 2022, with a focus on sustainable revenue growth [88] Other Important Information - The company closed the fourth quarter with $522 million in cash and cash equivalents, a decrease of $111 million from the previous quarter due to M&A activities [43] - Revenue retention remained strong, within the target range of 105% to 115%, marking the 18th consecutive quarter in this range [40] Q&A Session Summary Question: Impact of changing guidance on growth expectations - Management noted that reassessment of hiring plans and changes in consumer behavior led to a reduction in growth expectations for 2022, emphasizing a focus on scalable and profitable growth opportunities [50][52] Question: Hiring environment and demand - Management clarified that the decision to slow down hiring was based on the high costs associated with new quota-carrying reps and the need to focus on existing employees' success [60][56] Question: Go-to-market strategy for healthcare - The company is shifting its go-to-market strategy to leverage partnerships and technology integrations, particularly in the healthcare sector, to drive growth [61][64] Question: Contribution of recent acquisitions - Recent acquisitions contributed low single digits to Q4 revenue, with expectations for mid-to-low single-digit contributions in 2022 as integration efforts continue [69][70] Question: Management changes and sales direction - The return of a key executive is expected to enhance the sales strategy, focusing on leverageable growth rather than traditional staffing models [75][86]