MeritValue

iQIYI, Inc.

IQdata completeness 88%8 fiscal years on file

Data notes: no data for concept 'epsDiluted'

The thesis, from the filings

iQIYI, Inc. earns about 1% on invested capital. The cash-flow models don't apply cleanly here — the ledger says why below.Whether it’s worth owning at today’s price is the last question — and yours to answer, below.

i. The business — what you’d actually own
FigureFY 2021FY 2022FY 2023FY 2024FY 2025
Revenue$4.79B1$4.2B2$4.49B3$4B4$3.9B5
Net income−$968.1M6−$19.7M7$271.2M8$104.7M9−$29.5M10
Operating cash flow−$934M11−$10.2M12$472.1M13$289.1M14$15.1M15
Capital expenditure$41M16$25.3M17$5.21M18$10.9M19$13.7M20
Free cash flow (derived)−$975M11−$35.5M12$466.9M13$278.2M14$1.43M15
Total debt$646.2M21$485.4M22$503.1M23$541.8M24$462.1M25
Cash & equivalents$470.3M26$1.03B27$624.6M28$483.6M29$622.7M30
Diluted shares—————

Superscripts are receipts. Each links to the SEC filing the number came from (full list at the bottom).

iii. Is this a good business?
Moat signal · return on invested capital
1% avg · 5y
FY21 -58%FY22 21%FY23 27%FY24 11%FY25 4%

It earned an average 1% on invested capital over 5 years. Compare that to what it costs to fund the business.

seeing a moat in the numbers →
Management signal · capital allocation
— shares · 5y

Total debt has fallen 28% — deleveraging.

reading capital allocation →

Signals, not verdicts — read from the filings above. Numbers don’t prove a moat; they show its footprint. You decide.

iv. What it’s worth — engine v0.1.0
DCF · Growth Exit 10Y
not applicable
no diluted share count — cannot compute per-share value
DCF · Growth Exit 5Y
not applicable
no diluted share count — cannot compute per-share value
Earnings Power Value
not applicable
normalized (5y-median) earnings non-positive — EPV undefined
Graham Number
not applicable
diluted EPS missing or non-positive — Graham Number undefined

Different models answer different questions — which to trust when →

Sources — the receipts
  1. 20-F · period ending 2021-12-31 · accession 0001564590-22-011874 (RevenueFromContractWithCustomerExcludingAssessedTax)
  2. 20-F · period ending 2022-12-31 · accession 0000950170-23-009030 (RevenueFromContractWithCustomerExcludingAssessedTax)
  3. 20-F · period ending 2023-12-31 · accession 0000950170-24-031129 (RevenueFromContractWithCustomerExcludingAssessedTax)
  4. 20-F · period ending 2024-12-31 · accession 0000950170-25-045691 (RevenueFromContractWithCustomerExcludingAssessedTax)
  5. 20-F · period ending 2025-12-31 · accession 0001193125-26-107079 (RevenueFromContractWithCustomerExcludingAssessedTax)
  6. 20-F · period ending 2021-12-31 · accession 0001564590-22-011874 (NetIncomeLoss)
  7. 20-F · period ending 2022-12-31 · accession 0000950170-23-009030 (NetIncomeLoss)
  8. 20-F · period ending 2023-12-31 · accession 0000950170-24-031129 (NetIncomeLoss)
  9. 20-F · period ending 2024-12-31 · accession 0000950170-25-045691 (NetIncomeLoss)
  10. 20-F · period ending 2025-12-31 · accession 0001193125-26-107079 (NetIncomeLoss)
  11. 20-F · period ending 2021-12-31 · accession 0001564590-22-011874 (NetCashProvidedByUsedInOperatingActivities)
  12. 20-F · period ending 2022-12-31 · accession 0000950170-23-009030 (NetCashProvidedByUsedInOperatingActivities)
  13. 20-F · period ending 2023-12-31 · accession 0000950170-24-031129 (NetCashProvidedByUsedInOperatingActivities)
  14. 20-F · period ending 2024-12-31 · accession 0000950170-25-045691 (NetCashProvidedByUsedInOperatingActivities)
  15. 20-F · period ending 2025-12-31 · accession 0001193125-26-107079 (NetCashProvidedByUsedInOperatingActivities)
  16. 20-F · period ending 2021-12-31 · accession 0001564590-22-011874 (PaymentsToAcquirePropertyPlantAndEquipment)
  17. 20-F · period ending 2022-12-31 · accession 0000950170-23-009030 (PaymentsToAcquirePropertyPlantAndEquipment)
  18. 20-F · period ending 2023-12-31 · accession 0000950170-24-031129 (PaymentsToAcquirePropertyPlantAndEquipment)
  19. 20-F · period ending 2024-12-31 · accession 0000950170-25-045691 (PaymentsToAcquirePropertyPlantAndEquipment)
  20. 20-F · period ending 2025-12-31 · accession 0001193125-26-107079 (PaymentsToAcquirePropertyPlantAndEquipment)
  21. 20-F · period ending 2021-12-31 · accession 0001564590-22-011874 (ShortTermBorrowings)
  22. 20-F · period ending 2022-12-31 · accession 0000950170-23-009030 (ShortTermBorrowings)
  23. 20-F · period ending 2023-12-31 · accession 0000950170-24-031129 (ShortTermBorrowings)
  24. 20-F · period ending 2024-12-31 · accession 0000950170-25-045691 (LongTermDebtCurrent)
  25. 20-F · period ending 2025-12-31 · accession 0001193125-26-107079 (LongTermDebtCurrent)
  26. 20-F · period ending 2021-12-31 · accession 0001564590-22-011874 (CashAndCashEquivalentsAtCarryingValue)
  27. 20-F · period ending 2022-12-31 · accession 0000950170-23-009030 (CashAndCashEquivalentsAtCarryingValue)
  28. 20-F · period ending 2023-12-31 · accession 0000950170-24-031129 (CashAndCashEquivalentsAtCarryingValue)
  29. 20-F · period ending 2024-12-31 · accession 0000950170-25-045691 (CashAndCashEquivalentsAtCarryingValue)
  30. 20-F · period ending 2025-12-31 · accession 0001193125-26-107079 (CashAndCashEquivalentsAtCarryingValue)