Hello Group Inc.

Q1 2026 total revenue was RMB 2.39 billion, down 5% year over year and 7% quarter over quarter. Non-GAAP net income attributable to shareholders was RMB 288 million versus RMB 403.8 million a year ago and RMB 281.3 million last quarter. Non-GAAP gross margin was 38.8%, up from 37.9% a year ago, and adjusted operating income was RMB 349.2 million, up 1% year over year with a 14.6% margin. PRC Mainland value-added service revenue was RMB 1.76 billion, down 15% year over year; overseas VAS revenue was RMB 593.7 million, up 44% year over year. Cash, cash equivalents, short-term deposits, long-term deposits from investments and restricted cash totaled RMB 8.56 billion at March 31, 2026 versus RMB 8.68 billion at December 31, 2025. Net cash from operating activities was RMB 158.9 million. For Q2, management guided revenue to RMB 2.45 billion to RMB 2.55 billion, representing a 6.5% to 2.7% year-over-year decline. The company said this assumes Mainland China revenue declines by the high teens year over year at the midpoint, while overseas revenue grows by the high 50s year over year. For 2026, management now expects group revenue to decline by a couple of percentage points year over year, and adjusted operating margin to remain in the low teens.

The CEO/lead executive’s message was that Hello Group is still executing against its 2026 roadmap: stabilize the core domestic cash-cow business, keep improving Tantan’s experience, and use overseas products as the long-term growth engine. Management emphasized AI as a core product lever for lowering social barriers and improving conversion, citing AI-assisted chat, voice profile tools, and AI-powered new formats. The tone was constructive and confident, but with realism around the impact of regulation and a softer consumer backdrop.

The CFO said Q1 revenue was RMB 2.39 billion, down 5% year over year, with non-GAAP net income of RMB 288 million and adjusted operating income of RMB 349.2 million at a 14.6% margin. Non-GAAP gross margin improved to 38.8% from 37.9% a year ago, helped by better MENA margins and a richer mix of higher-margin overseas products, partly offset by lower Momo margins due to higher agency payout ratios. She also noted operating cash flow of RMB 158.9 million and cash and equivalents plus deposits and restricted cash of RMB 8.56 billion. For the outlook, she guided Q2 revenue to RMB 2.45 billion to RMB 2.55 billion and said full-year 2026 group revenue is now expected to be down by a couple of percentage points, while the low-teens adjusted operating margin target still looks achievable.

Analysts focused on the overseas business disruption, especially Turkey regulation and Ramadan softness, and management said the Q1 sequential decline came from Turkey app-store restrictions, softer MENA consumer sentiment during Ramadan, and ongoing geopolitical tension in parts of the Middle East. On the 2026 overseas outlook, management said the business remains fundamentally healthy and still expects about RMB 3 billion of overseas revenue, with possible variation of around RMB 100 million either way. Questions on domestic pressure centered on tax scrutiny and Alipay auto-renewal changes; management said the tax issue should ease by Q3 for impacted agencies and that Alipay mainly affected Tantan’s membership business, not Momo’s consumable-goods model. They said the domestic decline rate should improve in the second half, though some tax-related pressure could spill into Q3.