Rightmove wants to buy back its shares - is it priced too cheaply?

Rightmove has launched a share buy-back programme to run until late next month, February.

Companies buy back their own shares to keep up or further boost the share price, by reducing the number of shares in circulation; this approach is also sometimes undertaken to reduce the total number of shareholders in a firm, or to use uninvested cash held by the company.

During a buy-back, the company pays participating shareholders the market value per share.

Rightmove’s buy-back runs until February 22, the day before it produces its results for the 2018 calendar year.

As is customary in such cases, Rightmove’s announcement revealing the buy-back confirmed that the company had no price-sensitive information that it has yet to publish, which could have influenced its decision.

In line with just about all residential property firms quoted on the London Stock Exchange, Rightmove’s share price has had a difficult 12 months; its most recent high was 535p back in June 2018; yesterday, in the first day of trading of the new year, it was around 439p.

The portal’s formal announcement to the London Stock Exchange and its shareholders, made yesterday, was as follows:

Rightmove plc ("Rightmove" or the "Company") announces that it has commenced an irrevocable, non-discretionary programme to purchase shares on its own behalf, for cancellation, during its close period.  The programme commences from the start of business on 2 January 2019 until the close of business on 28 February 2019.

Any acquisitions will be effected within certain pre-set parameters, and in accordance with both the Company’s general authority to repurchase shares, the EU Market Abuse Regulation, and Chapter 12 of the Listing Rules which requires the maximum price paid to be limited to no more than 105 per cent of the average middle market closing price of the Company’s shares for the 5 dealing days preceding the date of purchase. The Company confirms that it currently has no unpublished price sensitive information.

The maximum pecuniary amount allocated to the buy-back programme is £20,000,000 and the maximum number of shares that will be purchased is 4,444,444, for the purpose of shareholder returns.