JOYY Inc. (JOYY) Stock Price & How to Invest

JOYY Inc. is a Cayman Islands company headquartered in Singapore with roughly 5,421 employees, and it reports in US dollars because most of its revenues and expenses are US-dollar denominated. Its business runs on three lines: Social Entertainment (the Bigo Live, Likee, imo and Hago apps, ~US$400.4 million of revenue in the first quarter of 2026), BIGO Ads (a programmatic advertising platform, ~US$124.8 million) and Shopline (commerce software for merchants, ~US$30.5 million). Average mobile monthly active users across the social apps reached ~276.3 million in the quarter, concentrated in North America, Europe, the Middle East and Southeast Asia. The company began in mainland China in 2005 as YY and incubated both YY Live and Huya there, then divested Huya in 2020 and sold YY Live to Baidu, a transaction signed in November 2020, deconsolidated in February 2021 and finally closed in early 2025. Mainland China accounted for ~9.8% of net revenues in 2025, down from ~15.3% in 2023, and those operations are held through variable interest entities.

The investment picture is a cheap operating business attached to an unusually large treasury. Full-year 2025 net revenues fell to ~US$2,124.2 million from ~US$2,237.8 million in 2024 as live streaming shrank, then the first quarter of 2026 grew ~12.4% year over year to ~US$555.7 million, with live streaming returning to growth (+2.4%) and BIGO Ads up ~55.6%. GAAP operating income in that quarter was only ~US$6.8 million, while interest and investment income was ~US$39.8 million, so almost all reported profit comes from the portfolio rather than the apps. Net cash stood at ~US$3,175.1 million on March 31, 2026, against a ~US$3.68 billion market value at ~US$73 per ADS, and the board has authorized a ~US$600 million buyback running to the end of 2028 plus a ~US$900 million dividend program for 2026 through 2028, starting with ~US$1.50 per ADS for the first quarter.

Almost all reported profit comes from the treasury rather than operations: first-quarter 2026 operating income was ~US$6.8 million on ~US$555.7 million of revenue against ~US$39.8 million of interest and investment income, so lower rates or a drawn-down portfolio would visibly cut earnings, and the ~17x trailing P/E is largely a multiple on interest. Roughly ~US$2.05 billion of the ~US$3.18 billion net cash sits in long-term deposits and held-to-maturity investments rather than on hand, a portion of the group's cash is inside mainland China where transfers to the Cayman parent face registration and approval limits, and distributions currently exceed operating cash flow (~US$128 million of dividends and buybacks against ~US$46.0 million of first-quarter operating cash). China exposure is real but shrinking (~9.8% of 2025 revenue, run through VIEs), and while the auditor is PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP in Singapore (PCAOB ID 1093, inspectable, with no HFCAA identification disclosed), the 20-F still flags the possibility of US policies targeting China-associated companies, including delisting. Governance and tax add friction: Class B shares carry ten votes each against one for Class A, and JOYY states it believes it was a passive foreign investment company (PFIC) for 2025 and will likely be one again, which triggers adverse US tax treatment for US holders. Goodwill of ~US$2.19 billion remains after a ~US$454.9 million BIGO write-down in 2024, and the 2020 short-seller report and resulting shareholder class action are historical, with the FY2025 20-F filed April 28, 2026 stating the company is not a party to any pending material litigation.

15 analysts publish price targets on JOYY, averaging $81.08 against a $73.02 price as of August 2026, or +11.0%. The published targets run from $66.00 to $98.00, a moderate spread, and the ratings split 14 buy, 1 hold, 0 sell. Over the last six months there has been 1 raise and 0 cuts among the published actions. A price target is what an analyst published on a date, not a prediction, and sell-side ratings skew positive across the whole market.

Read the full JOYY forecast and price target for the target table, the recent rating actions by firm, and how the consensus has shifted.

We give no verdict on JOYY Inc.. Both cases are real, which is why the question is contested at all, so here is the strongest version of each.

The case for buying. BIGO Ads is the growth engine. Advertising revenue reached ~US$124.8 million in the first quarter of 2026, up ~55.6% year over year, with the BIGO Audience Network (third-party publisher traffic) up ~78.8% and SDK ad requests up ~109%. The most optimistic published target, $98.00, assumes this works close to its best case.

The case against. Almost all reported profit comes from the treasury rather than operations: first-quarter 2026 operating income was ~US$6.8 million on ~US$555.7 million of revenue against ~US$39.8 million of interest and investment income, so lower rates or a drawn-down portfolio would visibly cut earnings, and the ~17x trailing P/E is largely a multiple on interest. The most pessimistic target, $66.00, is roughly what JOYY is worth if this bites instead.

Read the full bull and bear case on JOYY, including what would have to change to break either one. Walnut is not an investment adviser.

A simple financial snapshot. These are approximations and refresh quarterly; for current figures see JOYY Inc.'s investor relations page or your broker.

• Market cap: ~US$3.68B (~50.4M ADS at ~US$73)
• Revenue (TTM through Q1 2026): ~US$2.19B
• Net cash (March 31, 2026): ~US$3.18B
• Enterprise value: ~US$0.5B (~0.23x TTM sales)
• P/E (TTM) and price to book: ~17x and ~0.57x
• Dividend (Q1 2026 declared): ~US$1.50 per ADS (~US$6.00 annualized, ~8%)

JOYY defines net cash as cash, restricted cash, short-term and restricted short-term deposits, short-term investments, and long-term deposits and held-to-maturity investments, less short-term and long-term loans; at March 31, 2026 that was ~US$3,175.1 million against only ~US$23.3 million of short-term loans, with the 2019 convertible notes now matured. Subtracting it from the ~US$3.68 billion market value leaves an enterprise value near ~US$0.5 billion, or roughly ~0.23x trailing sales, which is the single most striking number in the filing. Book value is ~US$6.53 billion including ~US$2.19 billion of goodwill, so the ADS trades at ~0.57x reported equity. Figures are drawn from the Q1 2026 6-K filed May 26, 2026, the FY2025 20-F filed April 28, 2026, and market data as of August 2026.

Other names that sit close to JOYY: same theme, named as a direct competitor, or held beside it in the same funds. Each entry says which. Worth a look if you are thinking about diversification within a thesis rather than concentration on one ticker.

There are three common ways to get JOYY exposure. Buy shares (or fractional shares) directly at any major broker. Hold an ETF that includes it, which spreads the position across many companies. Or build it into a focused thematic portfolio, so JOYY sits alongside other stocks that express the same thesis.

Walnut takes the portfolio route. Describe a thesis where JOYY fits (for example “AI infrastructure” or “dividend-growth large-caps”) and the AI proposes 5 to 6 constituents with target weights. You review the plan and fund it through your own broker when you're ready.

New to this? Start with how to invest in stocks, see how to analyze a stock with AI, or compare the best AI stock analyzers.

JOYY is a barely-profitable-on-operations global live streaming and ad tech operator wrapped around a cash balance almost as large as its market value, so the case turns on how much of that cash comes back to holders and whether BIGO Ads growth outlasts the live streaming base.

Whether JOYY is worth buying today depends more on your time horizon and what you already hold than on any single call. We walk through valuation, what would have to go right, and the risks in is JOYY a buy or a sell?, and where the stock could go from here in the JOYY stock forecast.

For income investors, whether JOYY pays a dividend and how the payout looks is covered in does JOYY pay a dividend? And to weigh JOYY against a peer, read the full side-by-side comparisons: JOYY vs META and JOYY vs GOOGL.