Investing.com - Rightmove (LON:RMV) shares rose on Friday after the British online real estate platform said it expects revenue growth to be between 8% to 10% in 2025, topping a jump of 7% in the prior year.
The outlook suggests that the firm, which advertises properties to buy or rent, could see sales of around 425 million pounds at the midpoint of the range, Reuters estimated. This would be mostly in line with company-compiled projections of 424.3 million pounds.
The Bank of England's decision earlier this month to slash its base rate to the lowest level since 2023 is beginning to "feed through" to lower lending rates for homebuyers, the company said in a statement.
Near the end of last year, mortgage lending volumes increased in the U.K., buoyed by the BoE's move to bring down interest rates. Policymakers are tipped to reduce rates by another 75 basis points before the end of the year, providing future support to the country's housing sector, according to a Reuters poll.
Along lingering inflationary pressures are continuing to hang over the British economy and cast doubt over the pace of future borrowing cost decreases, Rightmove said it expects "underlying markets and platform strength" will bolster returns "for 2025 and beyond."
"There is a long runway of opportunity to both broaden and deepen Rightmove's services on one connected platform, and our team is continuing to drive that momentum in 2025," said CEO Johan Svanstrom in a statement.
Full-year revenue grew by 7% to 389.9 million pounds, while operating profit edged down by 1% to 256.3 million pounds. Rightmove's total dividend for 2024 increased by 5% versus the prior year to 9.8p, compared with consensus estimates of 9.49p.
In a note to clients, analysts at Jefferies said the 2024 results were "solid at the headlines," adding the current-year guidance is "similar in direction" to a prior outlook provided by Rightmove in a trading update in November.
"There is no obvious reason why consensus should move here," the Jefferies analysts said.
