Zhihu, Inc. Class A (HK:2390)
:2390
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Zhihu, Inc. Class A
(2390)
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Rating:50Neutral
Price Target:
HK$11.00
▲(24.86% Upside)
Action:ReiteratedDate:11/26/25
Zhihu's overall stock score of 50 is primarily driven by mixed financial performance, with a strong balance sheet offset by ongoing losses and revenue declines. Technical indicators show bearish momentum, contributing to the lower score, while a reasonable P/E ratio offers some valuation support. The focus remains on achieving profitability and reversing revenue trends for future improvement.
Positive Factors
Strong Equity Base
A strong equity base provides financial stability and reduces reliance on debt, allowing for strategic investments and growth opportunities.
Negative Factors
Declining Revenue
A decline in revenue suggests challenges in market demand or competition, potentially impacting future profitability and growth prospects.
Read all positive and negative factors
Positive Factors
Negative Factors
Strong Equity Base
A strong equity base provides financial stability and reduces reliance on debt, allowing for strategic investments and growth opportunities.
Read all positive factors
Zhihu, Inc. Class A (2390) vs. iShares MSCI Hong Kong ETF (EWH)
Market Cap
HK$1.84B
Dividend YieldN/A
Average Volume (3M)145.29K
Price to Earnings (P/E)―
Beta (1Y)1.51
Revenue Growth-23.80%
EPS GrowthN/A
CountryHK
Employees1,887
SectorCommunication Services
Sector Strength97
IndustryInternet Content & Information
Share Statistics
EPS (TTM)-0.37
Shares Outstanding254,416,100
10 Day Avg. Volume161,950
30 Day Avg. Volume145,293
Financial Highlights & Ratios
PEG Ratio0.19
Price to Book (P/B)0.60
Price to Sales (P/S)0.69
P/FCF Ratio-8.79
Enterprise Value/Market CapN/A
Enterprise Value/RevenueN/A
Enterprise Value/Gross ProfitN/A
Enterprise Value/EbitdaN/A
Forecast
1Y Price Target
HK$11.00Price Target Upside24.86% Upside
Rating ConsensusModerate Buy
Number of Analyst Covering2
EPS Forecast (FY)-0.09
Revenue Forecast (FY)HK$2.79B
Zhihu, Inc. Class A Business Overview & Revenue Model
Company Description
Zhihu Inc. operates an online content community in the People's Republic of China. Its community allows people to seek inspiration, find solutions, make decisions, and have fun. The company also offers technology, business support, and consulting ...
How the Company Makes Money
Zhihu generates revenue through several key streams. Primarily, it earns money from premium membership subscriptions that offer users exclusive access to high-quality content and features. Additionally, the company generates income through adverti...
Zhihu, Inc. Class A Earnings Call Summary
Earnings Call Date:Mar 25, 2026
(Q4-2025)
| % Change Since: |
Next Earnings Date:May 27, 2026
Earnings Call Sentiment Neutral
The call conveyed a mixed but cautiously constructive view: management highlighted a major structural milestone—first full-year non-GAAP profitability—and strong momentum in AI-driven engagement, creator activity, IP monetization and sequential recovery in marketing services. However, meaningful year-over-year revenue declines, Q4 non-GAAP loss, gross margin compression and a sizeable one-time goodwill impairment temper the outlook. Management plans disciplined, ROI-focused investments in AI monetization (IP and data services) while preserving operating discipline. Overall, positives (profitability milestone, AI/product traction, IP growth and sequential commercial recovery) are balanced by significant near-term revenue and margin challenges and one-time charges, leading to a measured tone about growth ahead.Positive Updates
First Full-Year Non-GAAP Profit
Achieved first ever full-year non-GAAP net income of RMB 37.9 million in 2025 versus an adjusted net loss of RMB 96.3 million in 2024, marking a structural profitability milestone driven by cost discipline and improved operating leverage.
Negative Updates
Year-over-Year Revenue Decline
Total Q4 revenue was RMB 643.5 million, down from RMB 859.2 million in Q4 2024 (approximately -25.1% YoY), reflecting ongoing revenue mix optimization and a multi-quarter top-line contraction despite sequential improvement.
Read all updates
Q4-2025 Updates
Positive
Negative
First Full-Year Non-GAAP Profit
Achieved first ever full-year non-GAAP net income of RMB 37.9 million in 2025 versus an adjusted net loss of RMB 96.3 million in 2024, marking a structural profitability milestone driven by cost discipline and improved operating leverage.
Read all positive updates
Company Guidance
Management guided that in 2026 Zhihu will prioritize disciplined operations while accelerating AI integration and scaling AI‑driven commercialization—focusing on higher‑margin, capital‑efficient revenue streams (notably AI‑enabled short‑form drama/comic adaptations and export data solutions) with investments concentrated on initiatives with visible ROI and a path to positive cash flow rather than aggressive cash burn. They pointed to 2025 achievements as the foundation for this plan: full‑year non‑GAAP adjusted net income of RMB 37.9 million (vs an adjusted net loss of RMB 96.3 million in 2024), Q4 total revenue of RMB 643.5 million (vs RMB 859.2 million YoY) with marketing services of RMB 234.8 million (up 24% sequentially; vs RMB 315.9 million YoY), paid membership revenue of RMB 333.5 million with 12.2 million average monthly members (Q4 ARPU +1.4% sequentially; renewal rates +2.7 ppt), Q4 gross profit RMB 344.8 million (gross margin 53.6%), Q4 GAAP net loss RMB 210.8 million (non‑GAAP adjusted net loss RMB 39.4 million), cash and equivalents RMB 4.5 billion (versus RMB 4.9 billion a year earlier), share buybacks of 31.1 million Class A shares for USD 66.5 million plus 16.6 million via trustee for USD 23.4 million (representing 6.29% of shares), and encouraging engagement/AI metrics—Q4 average daily time spent per user >41 minutes; Q4 daily high‑quality content +>20% YoY (full‑year +31%); professional AI content +>30% YoY; Ideas daily content +73.5% (daily interactions doubled); Circles daily content creation >100% sequentially (views +72%); Zhida direct MAUs +260% YoY (next‑month retention +83% YoY); and Feb ’26 average daily search queries per DAU +16% vs Nov ’25—which management expects to translate into continued recovery in marketing services and new scalable AI monetization in 2026.Zhihu, Inc. Class A Financial Statement Overview
Summary
Income Statement
35
Negative
Balance Sheet
75
Positive
Cash Flow
40
Negative
| Breakdown | TTM | Dec 2024 | Dec 2023 | Dec 2022 | Dec 2021 | Dec 2020 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Income Statement | ||||||
| Total Revenue | 3.15B | 3.60B | 4.20B | 3.60B | 2.96B | 1.35B |
| Gross Profit | 1.98B | 2.18B | 2.30B | 1.81B | 1.55B | 757.80M |
| EBITDA | -209.85M | -456.19M | -1.05B | -1.58B | -1.37B | -583.27M |
| Net Income | 138.17M | -171.80M | -843.64M | -1.58B | -1.30B | -517.55M |
Balance Sheet | ||||||
| Total Assets | 5.75B | 5.73B | 6.80B | 7.66B | 8.81B | 3.76B |
| Cash, Cash Equivalents and Short-Term Investments | 4.61B | 4.86B | 5.46B | 6.26B | 7.21B | 3.10B |
| Total Debt | 229.59M | 19.13M | 45.73M | 96.56M | 122.66M | 2.89M |
| Total Liabilities | 1.54B | 1.54B | 2.09B | 1.96B | 2.07B | 1.01B |
| Stockholders Equity | 4.14B | 4.14B | 4.60B | 5.65B | 6.74B | 2.75B |
Cash Flow | ||||||
| Free Cash Flow | 0.00 | -282.92M | -424.40M | -1.12B | -447.67M | -246.37M |
| Operating Cash Flow | 0.00 | -280.19M | -415.53M | -1.11B | -440.23M | -244.42M |
| Investing Cash Flow | 0.00 | 2.56B | -1.68B | 3.49B | -3.14B | 430.11M |
| Financing Cash Flow | 0.00 | -403.86M | -365.06M | -108.35M | 4.88B | 9.29M |
Zhihu, Inc. Class A Technical Analysis
Negative
8.81
Price Trends
8.62
Negative
9.11
Negative
10.57
Negative
Market Momentum
-0.40
Positive
36.01
Neutral
9.73
Positive
Evaluating momentum and price trends is crucial in stock analysis to make informed investment decisions. For HK:2390, the sentiment is Negative. The current price of 8.81 is above the 20-day moving average (MA) of 7.79, above the 50-day MA of 8.62, and below the 200-day MA of 10.57, indicating a bearish trend. The MACD of -0.40 indicates Positive momentum. The RSI at 36.01 is Neutral, neither overbought nor oversold. The STOCH value of 9.73 is Positive, not indicating any strong overbought or oversold conditions. Overall, these indicators collectively point to a Negative sentiment for HK:2390.
Zhihu, Inc. Class A Peers Comparison
UnderperformOutperform
Sector (60)
Name | Overall Rating | Market Cap | P/E Ratio | ROE | Dividend Yield | Revenue Growth | EPS Growth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
77 Outperform | HK$196.06B | 13.56 | 25.44% | ― | 11.37% | 16.74% | |
73 Outperform | HK$100.01B | 17.65 | 13.77% | 1.01% | 13.62% | 80.52% | |
67 Neutral | HK$26.35B | -39.92 | -4.08% | ― | -10.26% | -85.75% | |
60 Neutral | $48.67B | 4.58 | -11.27% | 4.14% | 2.83% | -41.78% | |
60 Neutral | HK$16.62B | 5.39 | 12.13% | 8.13% | -1.40% | 22.37% | |
53 Neutral | HK$287.08B | 59.14 | 2.02% | ― | -2.92% | -57.12% | |
50 Neutral | HK$1.84B | -9.81 | -4.72% | ― | -23.80% | ― |
* Communication Services Sector Average
HK:2390
Zhihu, Inc. Class A
7.30
-2.45
-25.13%
HK:0772
China Literature
25.80
2.40
10.26%
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108.80
30.20
38.42%
HK:9898
Weibo Corp Class A
68.05
6.55
10.65%
HK:1024
Kuaishou Technology Class B
44.90
-0.75
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Tencent Music Entertainment Group Class A
35.50
-14.21
-28.58%
Zhihu, Inc. Class A Corporate Events
Zhihu Inc. Releases Q3 2025 Financial Results
Nov 25, 2025
Zhihu Inc. has announced its unaudited financial results for the quarter ending September 30, 2025. The results, prepared according to U.S. GAAP, highlight the company’s financial performance and are published in compliance with U.S. SEC and...
Zhihu Inc. Schedules Board Meeting to Review Q3 Financial Results
Oct 30, 2025
Zhihu Inc. has announced a board meeting scheduled for November 25, 2025, to consider and approve the company’s unaudited financial results for the third quarter ending September 30, 2025. This meeting will be followed by an earnings confere...
Zhihu, Inc. Grants Over 1 Million RSUs to Key Employees
Oct 17, 2025
Zhihu, Inc. announced the grant of 1,079,805 Restricted Share Units (RSUs) to six eligible employees under its 2022 Share Incentive Plan. This move aims to align the interests of the employees with those of the shareholders and incentivize outstan...
Glossary
BuyA stock rated as a "Buy" is expected to perform better than the overall market or a specific benchmark over the near-to-medium term. This rating suggests the stock is likely to deliver higher returns compared to other stocks in the same sector or market index. Note: This is not investment advice; please consult a financial advisor before making investment decisions.
HoldA stock rated as a "Hold" is expected to perform in line with the overall market or a specific benchmark. This rating indicates that the stock is neither particularly compelling nor unfavorable for investment. Note: This is not investment advice; please consult a financial advisor before making investment decisions.
SellA stock rated as a "Sell" is expected to perform worse than the overall market or a specific benchmark over the near-to-medium term. This rating suggests the stock may deliver lower returns compared to other stocks in the same sector or market index. Note: This is not investment advice; please consult a financial advisor before making investment decisions.
Disclaimer
This AI Analyst Stock Report is automatically generated by our AI systems using advanced algorithms and publicly available financial, technical, and market data. While the information provided aims to be accurate and insightful, it is intended for informational purposes only and should not be considered financial advice. Any content created by an AI (Artificial Intelligence) system may contain inaccuracies and/or contain errors. Investing in stocks carries inherent risks, and past performance is not indicative of future results. This report does not account for your personal financial circumstances, objectives, or risk tolerance. Always conduct your own research or consult with a qualified financial advisor before making investment decisions. The analysis and recommendations provided are based on historical and current data and may not fully reflect future market conditions or unexpected developments. Neither the creators of this report nor its affiliated entities guarantee the accuracy, completeness, or reliability of the information presented. Use this report at your own discretion and risk.