Winkworth profit and revenue rise, on track for full year

AIM-listed estate agency M Winkworth reported a rise in interim profit and revenue on Wednesday as it opened four new offices and said full-year results should be in line with management's expectations.

In the six months to 30 June, pre-tax profit increased 10.4% to £596,000 on revenue of £2.8m, up 10.2%. The company said its performance was "solid" despite ongoing Brexit uncertainty, driven by central service initiatives and the continued solid performance of the lettings and management business.

New franchising applicants increased by 135% from the first half of last year to 134, with momentum expected to feed through to the remainder of the year and beyond and four new franchises planned for 2018.

Transactions in the first half were above market average but 6% lower than the first half of 2017 as a lacklustre sales start in the second half of last year following the snap election fed into a slow start to 2018. Activity rebuilt from January onwards, but Winkworth said it did not enjoy the early boost normally seen in the first few months of a new year and it took time for new deals arranged to feed through into exchanges and completions.

Chief executive officer Dominic Agace said: "We expect the second half of the year to show an improvement on the first as further new franchises open and sales agreed in the Spring market complete. The rentals and management business is expected to benefit from the important lettings months of August and September. Based on our first half performance and recent trading, we expect full year results to be in line with management expectations.

"We anticipate that the number of new franchised offices and resales to new, talented operators will continue to grow, building a compounding revenue stream for the group. Combined with an increasing number of quality applicants looking to join Winkworth and the company's strong financial position, the outlook remains positive."

At 0940 BST, the shares were up 15% to 125p.