Rightmove keeps FY targets but warns growth will slow in H2

(Sharecast News) - Property portal operator Rightmove has reiterated its full-year guidance after a "strong" first half, in which revenues and operating profits both rose by a tenth, but warned that growth will slow slightly in the second half. Revenues totalled £211.7m during the six months to 30 June, up from £192.1m a year earlier, despite total memberships rising just 1%, as agents and developers upgraded packages and purchased incremental products, Rightmove said.

Average revenues per advertiser grew by £112 to £1,609, helped by particular strength in the new homes market.

Meanwhile, the company boasted sustained traffic growth, with the total time spent on the platform up 10% at 9.1bn minutes - its second-highest on record.

Operating profits were up 10% at £145.4m, as the underlying operating profit margin inched higher to 71% from 70% last year.

Rightmove also raised its interim dividend by 9% to 4.05p per share.

Looking ahead, the company said that property end-market trends "remain supportive for our partners' businesses", with further cuts to interest rates expected before the end of the year, and the lowest two-year fixed mortgage rate down 88 basis points compared with last year at 3.8%.

For the full year, Rightmove said it continues to expect revenue growth of 8-10%, but added: "H2 will see ongoing revenue growth, but following last year's record H2 we expect the year-on-year revenue growth percentage in H2 to be lower than H1."

The stock was down 2.1% at 774.6p by 0835 BST.