Investors Chronicle has recently described UK property portal website giant, Rightmove, as "probably the most impressive business I have ever looked at in over 20 years as an analyst and financial journalist."
Writing in the magazine, Phil Oakley says: “Its ability to grow while achieving incredibly high profit margins and cash generation with very little capital investment has delivered sensational returns for its investors.”
He says that Rightmove has achieved growth “while delivering probably the best financial performance of any company listed on the London Stock Exchange”.
The article, under the title ‘Can anything stop the Rightmove juggernaut?’ also asks: “So far, Rightmove has been able to fend off the competition and thrive, but can it continue to do so?”
The article says that leaving Rightmove may have significant negative implications for agents.
“Rightmove has created a brand and service that have become synonymous with estate agency itself.
“To leave and go elsewhere is a risk that few estate agents have been prepared to take . . . This has given Rightmove immense pricing power.”
But, he asks, can Rightmove keep on increasing its prices?
“Trawl the internet, estate agency forums and trade publications, and you will find that Rightmove and its pricing is a hot topic”, says the article.
Agents are facing tough times, there is disquiet over the opaqueness of its pricing, and then there is the issue of geographical pricing.
So, how effective is the competition to Rightmove?
Read more here
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