Hemnet Doubles Operating Profit in Bonanza Q2

The Swedish real estate portal company Hemnet has announced its results for the second quarter of the financial year. The Stockholm based firm saw its most successful and profitable period yet since going public in April 2021, highlights of Hemnet's latest financial and operational report include:

• Net sales increased 26.9% to SEK 269.7m ($26.3m)
• Operating profit increased 102.7% to SEK 145.3m ($14.2m)
• Average revenue per listing, increased 33.9% to SEK 3,163 ($308)

The uptick in net sales was driven by a drive to market the portal's premium listings packages and a volume of published listings that exceeded last year's highs by 3.2%.

The Swedish real estate market shares similarities with the Australian market in that the vendor is ultimately responsible for the marketing costs associated with the sale of their home rather than the listing agent. Hemnet's business model is ideal to take advantage of current market conditions in Sweden where selling times are becoming longer with slightly lower prices according to CEO Ceccilia Beck-Friis:

"One of Hemnet’s strengths is that our business is also well positioned for this type of market, as we are paid for each new listing rather than a completed property transaction. In addition, our larger marketing packages become even more valuable as sellers seek to maximise the exposure of their home for sale, in order to secure a sale and get the right price."

Hemnet is one of the most dominant portals anywhere in the world and maintains a powerful grip on the Swedish property market with its position seemingly growing stronger since IPO with revenue surpassing market expectations by around 2.75% for Q2.

"This quarter, which was marked by many uncertainties and challenges for businesses around the world, has highlighted Hemnet’s robust position. With visitors spending an incredible 880 million minutes on our platforms during the second quarter we have by far the largest and most engaged home-moving audience in Sweden, and the fact that nine out of ten properties that are sold in Sweden are listed on Hemnet adds further weight to that position. We have a strong financial position and in May we paid our first dividend as a public company," continued Beck-Friis.

Since floating on the Stockholm NASDAQ back in April 2021, Hemnet's share price has seen some big fluctuations with the market seemingly unsure of the company's value. After initially surging over 50% shortly after IPO before going on to highs of SEK  227 in August last year the stock fell along with its tech peers to a low of SEK 114 (just below IPO price) in May. Since then Hemnet's stock has mounted a comeback with the price having increased nearly 40% in the last month at the time of writing.