Backblaze Inc (BLZE) Q4 2024 Earnings Call Highlights: Strong Revenue Growth and Strategic Advances

In This Article:

  • Revenue: $33.8 million in Q4, representing 18% year-over-year growth.

  • B2 Cloud Storage Revenue: $17.1 million, 22% year-over-year growth.

  • Computer Backup Revenue: $16.7 million, 13% year-over-year growth.

  • Adjusted EBITDA Margin: 14% for Q4, doubling over the same period last year.

  • Net Revenue Retention (NRR): 116%, up from 109% last year.

  • Adjusted Gross Margin: 78% for the quarter.

  • Cash and Short-term Investments: $55 million at the end of Q4.

  • Cash Flow from Operations: $12.5 million for the year, a $20 million improvement over the prior year.

  • Adjusted Free Cash Flow: Negative $20 million for the full year, improved by $23 million from last year.

  • Annual Recurring Revenue (ARR) for B2: $70 million, a $5 million increase from Q3.

  • Full Year 2025 Revenue Guidance: $144 million to $146 million.

  • Q1 2025 Revenue Guidance: $34.1 million to $34.5 million.

  • Adjusted EBITDA Guidance for Full Year 2025: 16% to 18%.

  • Adjusted EBITDA Guidance for Q1 2025: 13% to 15%.

Release Date: February 25, 2025

For the complete transcript of the earnings call, please refer to the full earnings call transcript.

Positive Points

  • Backblaze Inc (NASDAQ:BLZE) reported an 18% year-over-year revenue growth, with B2 Cloud Storage growing by 22%.

  • The company achieved a record sales booking quarter, surpassing the combined total of the previous three quarters.

  • Backblaze Inc (NASDAQ:BLZE) successfully completed an oversubscribed secondary offering, raising $37 million in net proceeds.

  • The company has made significant progress in its go-to-market transformation, with ARR win rates and sales productivity doubling year-over-year.

  • Backblaze Inc (NASDAQ:BLZE) is seeing strong momentum in its AI customer segment, with a tenfold increase in data stored by AI companies.

Negative Points

  • The consumer side of the computer backup business is in a long-term secular decline.

  • Despite improvements, the company still reported negative adjusted free cash flows for the full year.

  • Backblaze Inc (NASDAQ:BLZE) experienced a larger customer loss in Q1, impacting growth numbers.

  • The company faces competition from major cloud providers like Amazon, Google, and Microsoft, as well as other storage offerings from partners.

  • There is a lag in translating leading indicators from the go-to-market transformation into revenue due to the nature of the business.

Q & A Highlights

Q: On the partner front, what are the key metrics you're monitoring for the year, specifically any quantitative goals for partners in '25? A: Gleb Budman, CEO: On the partner side, we have two parts: the channel and the alliance. For the channel, we look at pipeline and sales productivity, measured as average ARR closed per person. For alliances, we focus on co-build, co-market, and co-sell strategies to solve customer problems.