(Alliance News) - OnTheMarket PLC released its full-year results on Tuesday showing that the company had its first profitable year since launching in 2015.
OnTheMarket shares were trading up 9.3% at 114.80 pence each in London on Tuesday morning.
The Aldershot, England-based company, which operates an online property search portal, reported that it swung to pretax profit of GBP1.1 million for the financial year ended January 31, from a loss of GBP11.7 million the year prior.
Revenue increased, growing 22% to GBP23.0 million from GBP18.8 million.
OnTheMarket highlighted the role of new home development in raising revenue despite the issue of GBP2.6 million of pandemic-related customer support discounts and a decrease in contract conversion in the first half of the financial year. Conversion activity picked up in the second half of the year, however, and ultimately 93% of property agencies advertising with OnTheMarket paid their contracts by the year end, compared to 68% in 2020.
The company noted an increase in consumer activity, including user visits and average monthly leads per advertiser, despite the interruption of the first national lockdown.
For the second half of the 2021 financial year, visits hit 151 million, up from 116 million a year ago. Meanwhile, full-year average revenue per property advertiser was up 16% to GBP142 each, from GBP122.
In response to the pandemic, OnTheMarket reduced administrative expenses by GBP7.4 million to GBP20.6 million compared with GBP28.0 million a year prior.
At the end of the financial year, OnTheMarket reported cash of GBP10.4 million and GBP400,000 of deferred creditor payments, compared to a cash balance of GBP8.7 million and deferred creditors of GBP700,000 on January 31, 2020.
For the new financial year, OnTheMarket said it is trading in line with board expectations after a "positive start".
With the first profitable year since the OnTheMarket's launch in 2015, the company expects to be able to invest further operationally into the business and return to normalised levels of marketing spend "without damaging the group's prospects for the foreseeable future, assuming no materially adverse unforeseen circumstances arise."
Chief Executive Jason Tebb said: "We look to the future with great excitement. The UK property market continues to be very active and our significant market opportunity remains. With our strong foundations and a new vision and strategy, we are well positioned to succeed."
OnTheMarket's results follow figures from Halifax on Monday which showed UK house prices continued to rocket as the market heads into the bustling summer period.
Home prices jumped 9.5% in May on an annual basis, and notched up a monthly gain of 1.3%. The average UK property price now stands at GBP261,743, a new record high, Halifax said. Annual house price inflation is at its strongest level in nearly seven years.
By Scarlett Butler; scarlettbutler@alliancenews.com
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