Rightmove First Take H126: A very mixed bag - A cut to revenue growth guidance but a material increase in capital distribution

Research evidence excerpt

Rightmove First Take H126: A very mixed bag - A cut to revenue growth guidance but a material increase in capital distribution

Marcus Diebel AC Europe Equity Research

(44-20) 7742-4447 31 July 2026 C A Z E N O V E

marcus.diebel@jpmorgan.com

Investment Thesis, Valuation and Risks

Rightmove (Underweight; Price Target: 404p)

Investment Thesis

Rightmove continues to broaden its product suite, accelerating the rollout of new tools and

AI-enabled applications. Management has finally now more explicitly acknowledged the

need for stepped-up investment, which we have been anticipating for some time. While we

view the strategic direction as sensible, we expect the transition to carry ongoing cost drag

also into FY27–FY28 (with higher costs already well flagged for FY26) and we forecast

Rightmove remaining in an investment phase also over the next 2–3 years, with operating

profit growth likely capped at <10% over that period. That said, with the shares now trading

below prior indicative bid levels from REA, we see increased susceptibility to potential

M&A interest. In the absence of such a catalyst, however, we think the scope for a

meaningful re-rating and material earnings upside is limited near term. While we are

encouraged by CEO Johan Svanstrom’s emphasis on improving the consumer experience

and funding growth initiatives, we believe investors will look for early proof points that

higher spend is translating into incremental revenues before sentiment improves. We

reiterate our Underweight rating, given downside risk to consensus/market margin

assumptions and a valuation multiple we still view as elevated versus peers in Classifieds.

We keep our SOTP-derived Dec-27 Price Target at 404p/share.

Rightmove SOTP

Revenue Adj EBITDA Margin (%) Multiple Value