13th Dec 2018 10:10
LONDON (Alliance News) - Online estate agency Purplebricks Group PLC said on Thursday it saw a widened loss from higher administrative and marketing costs, even as revenue rose significantly during the first half of its financial year.
For the six months to the end of October, pretax loss widened to GBP27.3 million, from GBP11.4 million the year before.
The drop was mainly due to a significant rise in expenses. Administrative and establishment expenses more than doubled to GBP28.5 million from GBP16.2 million, and sales and marketing costs also more than doubled to GBP39.0 million from GBP18.3 million the prior year.
The increased expenses were mostly the result of higher investment in marketing, as part of the roll-out of Purplebricks's business in the US.
Revenue however, rose by 75% to GBP70.1 million from GBP40.1 million, as a result of double-digit sales growth in the UK and Australia, and the ramp-up in the US as well as the first contribution from the group's Canadian business.
In the US, Purplebricks is now operating in seven states with the addition of Arizona, Nevada and Florida during the period.
In the UK, the company completed on GBP5.4 billion of property during the period, up from GBP4.6 billion the year before.
Looking ahead, Purplebricks lowered its guidance for full-year revenue to a range of GBP165 million to GBP175 million from GBP165 million to GBP185 million previously, due to challenging market conditions in the UK.
"Our UK business continues to make good progress, with strong sales growth, market share gains, and a step-up in both profitability and positive cashflow. It is this strength that will see Purplebricks emerge stronger from the ongoing industry shakeout, which is expected to continue to expose undercapitalised traditional and online competitors," said Chief Executive Officer Michael Bruce.
"We remain confident that our UK success will be replicated internationally, and that we will deliver substantial value for our shareholders," Bruce added.
Shares in Purplebricks were down 6.3% at 140.56 pence on Thursday.
Related Shares:
PURP.L