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- Domain (DHG) is so confident in the future of the property market that it has announced it is going to repay grants from JobKeeper
- It also issued a final dividend of four cents per share, its first final dividend since 2019
- For fiscal year 2021, the firm, which is majority-owned by Nine Entertainment, reported sales of $289.6 million, up 10.7 per cent
- The company’s net profit after tax was $35.6 million, a remarkable increase from FY20’s loss of $22.7.4 million
- Shares in Domain are up 3.75 per cent to $4.85 at 2:28 pm AEST
Domain (DHG) is so confident in the future of the property market that it has announced it is going to repay JobKeeper grants while paying its first final dividend since 2019.
For the fiscal year 2021, the firm, which is majority-owned by Nine Entertainment, reported sales of $289.6 million, up 10.7 per cent. Profits before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) was $100.6 million, up 21.1 per cent.
The company’s net profit after tax was $35.6 million, a markable increase from FY20’s loss of $22.7.4 million.
The move to repay JobKeeper will reduce FY22 EBITDA by $5.7 million.
On a reported basis, residential revenue grew by about 21 per cent, while like-for-like revenue increased by 20 per cent as revenue from media, developers, and commercial clients and agent and property data solutions grew seven and eight per cent respectively.
However, print revenues declined 33 per cent, reflecting the print pause during COVID, with the masthead being published only 68 per cent of its usual schedule.
Cost reduction initiatives, together with print volume declines, supported a 27 per cent year-on-year decline in expenses as Domain believes print remains a sustainable product for the high-end market.
Domain CEO and managing director Jason Pellegrino said the recovery in market listings have combined with an expansion in Domain’s controllable yield to deliver accelerating revenue growth in the second half.
“Domain delivers large, high-quality audiences, and in March we reached a new record, with a unique audience of 9.6 million across print and digital, up 23% year-on-year,” he said.
“Our unique digital audience of 9.3 million was an excellent outcome. Engagement metrics remain very high with a 52% year-on-year increase in app launches, and strong growth in listing views and enquiries.
“We have seen a 55% increase in buyer enquiries, our most valuable audience interaction, while reducing cost per enquiry by 25% year-on-year in the second half.”
Domain’s net debt was $79 million in June 2020, down from $105.8 million the previous year.
From the $195.5 million continuing expenditure base in FY21, ongoing costs are anticipated to rise in the high single digits to low double digits in FY22.
Domain issued a final dividend of four cents per share, its first final dividend since 2019.
Shares in Domain are up 3.75 per cent to $4.85 at 2:28 pm AEST.
