Rightmove (LSE:RMV) reported first-half revenue growth of 7% for the six months ended 30 June, with Agency revenue up 9% and New Homes revenue up 2%, as the property portal cut its full-year revenue growth guidance to 6-8% from a previous 8-10%.
The downgrade stems entirely from New Homes, where developments coming to market fell 6% year-on-year and membership dropped 4% in the half, reflecting what the company called the most difficult conditions developers have faced since the global financial crisis.
"Despite the current volume headwinds in New Homes, our continued momentum gives me confidence in 2026 and beyond", said chief executive Johan Svanstrom, pointing to record agency retention and early gains from its "Ask Rightmove" AI search tool.
Underlying operating profit rose 3%, keeping the operating margin at 69% and leaving full-year guidance of 3-5% underlying operating profit growth and at least 5% underlying earnings-per-share growth unchanged, with cost discipline offsetting the revenue shortfall.
The interim dividend rose 3% to 4.17p per share, and the company returned £124.7m to shareholders in the half through buybacks and dividends.
Rightmove plans to return more than £400m to shareholders over the next 12 months, including approximately £330m in additional buybacks, funded partly by a new £200m revolving credit facility signed on 21 July.
Strategic Growth Areas, comprising Commercial Property, Rental Services and Mortgages, generated £17.5m in revenue, up 14% year-on-year, with full-year growth guidance for that segment held at 20-30%.
News Intelligence what this means for the company
Rightmove cut full-year revenue growth guidance to 6–8% from 8–10%, driven entirely by New Homes weakness—developments to market fell 6% year-on-year and membership dropped 4% in the half, reflecting severe developer headwinds. The company offset the revenue miss through cost discipline, maintaining underlying operating profit and EPS guidance, while simultaneously lifting shareholder returns to over £400m over 12 months and achieving record agency retention, signalling resilience in its core business.
The guidance cut narrows near-term growth but does not alter the medium-term case: core Agency revenue remains robust (up 9%), the 69% operating margin is defended, and management's confidence in 2026 rests on record retention and early AI search gains. The New Homes slowdown is cyclical and tied to developer conditions, not portal fundamentals, though visibility on recovery timing remains absent.
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