Rightmove share price slumps after shock listings news

The share price of Rightmove dropped some 6% yesterday on the back of an announcement that it was terminating the listings of a key lettings platform from September 1.

The loss of online lettings operator OpenRent will mean the portal will lose 8% of its lettings listings, prompting its share price to drop in early morning trading - by the end of the day it had barely recovered and closed at 521.80p, some 26.20p down with a 4.78% drop.

A statement issued to the London Stock Exchange by Rightmove said: “OpenRent is classified as an online lettings agent within Rightmove's Estate Agency (Lettings) sub-segment and represents approximately 700 branch equivalents, with less than 8% of Rightmove's lettings listings in July 2024.  

“As has been seen recently, market dynamics - within lettings in particular - are fluid. While we remain confident of delivering revenue and margin in line with the guidance … the precise mix of membership and Average Revenue Per Advertiser may vary.  Our current estimate is that membership will decline by up to 3% year-on-year, with a year-on-year increase in ARPA of £90-£100.”

Rightmove told its shareholders in the same statement that its contract with OpenRent will terminate with effect from September 1. 

In a bid to deter criticism from those with a stake in the portal, it said it anticipated overall revenue growth of 7% to 9% and an underlying operating margin of 70%.   

In a swipe at its former customer, Rightmove continued: “OpenRent's landlord customers will therefore lose access to the UK's largest property-seeking audience. Rightmove remains the place for consumers to find more UK properties than any other portal, and in H1 2024, delivered 8 times the number of properties rented than the next largest portal. Over 80% of all consumer time spent on property portals continues to be spent on Rightmove.^”