Each month I will publish analysis of the listed property portal companies around the world. The analysis will look at the month on month share price performance, the overall changes versus 12 month share price highs and lows, and the implied EBITDA, Revenue and Net Profit multiples.
To date, the known listed property portal companies are:
Move Inc, NASDAQ: MOVE
Loopnet, NASDAQ: LOOP
Rightmove Plc, LON: RMV
REA Group, ASX: REA (Overview)
Seloger, EPA: SLG
Entreparticuliers, EPA: ALENT
IPGA, ASX: IPP
HouseValues, NASDAQ: SOLD
This article covers monthly share price movements, movement in market cap, share price comparison to 52 week highs and lows, and revenue, ebitda and net profit multiples.
Month on Month Share Price Movement
Over the last month, most listed property portal companies have experienced an increase in their share price.
| Company | Currency | 31/07/2008 Share Price | 31/08/2008 Share Price | Share Price Movement |
| Rightmove | GBP | £2.970 | £3.090 | 4.0% |
| REA | $A | $3.86 | $5.00 | 29.5% |
| Seloger | Euro | € 15.52 | € 17.57 | 13.2% |
| Move | US$ | $2.33 | $2.70 | 15.9% |
| Loopnet | US$ | $11.36 | $10.66 | -6.2% |
| HouseValues | US$ | $2.86 | $2.82 | -1.4% |
| Entreparticuliers | Euro | € 9.50 | € 9.90 | 4.2% |
| IPGA | $A | $0.125 | $0.14 | 12.0% |
The drivers of these share price movements are most likely to be:
Rightmove (UK) – Announced its half year results in late August and this didnt really have an effect on the share price as the strong financial result was offset by concern about the future prospects in the UK housing market and the likely exit of estate agents from the market.
REA Group (Aust) – Announced it full year results and these were very strong with year on year revenue growth of 45% and year on year profit growth being 52%. What was more impressive was the performance in the second half of the year where the EBITDA margin was 27% compared with 20% in the first half of the year (Click here for separate analysis). During the month the REA Group also announced that Simon Baker, the long time CEO, would be replaced by Greg Ellis (Click here for announcement).
Move (USA) – Annouced its quarterly results that we consistent with the last 4 quarters and showed little progress in the turn around of the business. The good news that helped spike the share price was the promise to dispose of the Welcome Wagon Business.
Movement in Market Cap (Currency Movement Adjusted)
The table below shows the movement in the market cap of the listed companies (in US $) and this has been adjusted for the movements in currencies over the last month.
| 31/07/2008 | 31/08/2008 | US $ Market Cap Movement | ||||
| Company | Currency | Market Cap Local (m) | Market Cap in US$ (m) | Market Cap Local (m) | Market Cap in US$ (m) | |
| Rightmove | GBP | £362 | $719 | £377 | $686 | -4.6% |
| REA | $A | $491 | $463 | $636 | $545 | 17.7% |
| Seloger | Euro | € 258 | $403 | € 293 | $429 | 6.5% |
| Move | US$ | $354 | $354 | $410 | $410 | 15.9% |
| Loopnet | US$ | $406 | $406 | $381 | $381 | -6.2% |
| HouseValues | US$ | $69 | $69 | $68 | $68 | -1.4% |
| Entreparticuliers | Euro | € 33 | $52 | € 35 | $51 | -2.0% |
| IPGA | $A | $13 | $12 | $14 | $12 | 1.8% |
The five large listed stocks are Rightmove, the REA Group, Seloger, Move and Loopnet. Of these, the REA Group and Move increased their market cap considerably over the month.
Share Price Comparison to 52 Week High / Low
The table below shows the current share price compared to the 52 week high and low.
| 52 Week High | 52 Week Low | |||||
| Company | Currency | 31/08/2008 Share Price | Share Price | Share Price Movement | Share Price | Share Price Movement |
| Rightmove | GBP | £3.090 | £6.345 | -51.3% | £2.128 | 45.2% |
| REA | $A | $5.00 | $7.49 | -33.2% | $3.63 | 37.7% |
| Seloger | Euro | € 17.57 | € 48.99 | -64.1% | € 11.00 | 59.7% |
| Move | US$ | $2.70 | $3.47 | -22.2% | $1.62 | 66.7% |
| Loopnet | US$ | $10.66 | $23.90 | -55.4% | $9.25 | 15.2% |
| HouseValues | US$ | $2.82 | $4.22 | -33.2% | $2.26 | 24.8% |
| Entreparticuliers | Euro | € 9.90 | € 21.80 | -54.6% | € 8.52 | 16.2% |
| IPGA | $A | $0.14 | $0.31 | -54.8% | $0.10 | 40.0% |
The following observations can be made:
- Rightmove, Seloger and Loopnet (from the big 5) are all off significant from their 12 month highs while the REA Group and Move are less so.
- The REA Group has been less hit in its decrease from its 12 month high most likely due to their multi-country approach and the development of growth options in other countries.
- Move has been under performing the group for a long time due to its consistently break even status and investors most likely in a wait and see mode.
- All companies, except Loopnet, are up significantly from their 12 month lows most likely due to the ongoing strong performance of these businesses and the emerging realisation that the online marketing models of very robust in the current troubled economic markets.
Revenue, EBITDA and Net Profit Multiples
The table below compares the revenue, EBITDA and net profit multiples of all listed companies based on the most recent financial performance information. All companies, with the exception of Entreparticuliers, have financial information up to the end of June 2008.
| 12 Months to 30 June 2008 | |||||||
| Company | Currency | REV (m) | REV x | EBITDA (m) | EBITDA x | NPAT (m) | NPAT x |
| Rightmove | GBP | £69 | 5.5 | £35 | 10.8 | £23 | 16.8 |
| REA | $A | $156 | 4.1 | $37 | 17.4 | $22 | 28.5 |
| Seloger | Euro | € 65 | 4.5 | € 33 | 8.7 | € 15 | 18.9 |
| Move | US$ | $268 | 1.5 | -$10 | -39.5 | -$10 | -40.8 |
| Loopnet | US$ | $81 | 4.7 | $30 | 12.6 | $21 | 18.3 |
| HouseValues | US$ | $47 | 1.4 | -$7 | -9.6 | -$13 | -5.2 |
| Entreparticuliers | Euro | € 13 | 2.7 | € 4 | 9.7 | € 3 | 12.4 |
| IPGA | $A | $1.9 | 7.5 | -$0.5 | -28.6 | -$0.4 | -39.8 |
The following observations can be made:
- Move, Housevalues and IPGA are all in loss making mode at the moment
- The REA Group EBITDA and NPAT multiples are all significantly higher than their peers and this probably reflects the market’s belief in the long term strategic direction of the business
- The Rightmove multiples are slightly lower than the peers probably relfecting the uncertainty of the UK housing market and its potential impact on estate agent numbers
Let me know what you think
Please note – these are the views of the author and are not meant to be construed as proper financial advice.
Advertising Partner
-->
{ 1 comment… read it below or add one }
Interesting to keep an eye on how the top property portals are coping with the current economic climate.
I would expect that these giants are struggling to find the numbers they need to meet targets. Some have moved into the Overseas Property space, which will help gain some revenue.
I also think that these sites dont move with the market quick enough and tend to rely more on brand and presence, but dont offer feature rich technology for an ever savvier marketplace.