Online property group Zoopla was today heading towards a £1 billion stock market flotation after majority shareholder Daily Mail & General Trust confirmed for the first time it is looking at such a move.
Daily Mail owner DMGT has a 52.6% stake in Zoopla, the second-biggest property advertising website after Rightmove, and could net a huge profit on selling some of that stake.
DMGT chief financial officer Stephen Daintith declined to comment on any plans for a float but estimated the company’s investment in Zoopla has been “significantly under £100 million”.
Credit Suisse and Jefferies are advising on “strategic options”, with City analysts reckoning a flotation is most likely for the company, which is also behind PrimeLocation and FindaProperty and sponsors West Bromwich Albion football club, above.
DMGT shares jumped 45p or more than 4% to hit a record high of 1013p — thanks not only to hopes of a Zoopla windfall but also a strong trading performance for the parent company.
Advertising climbed 5% at DMGT’s consumer arm as the booming MailOnline website offset declines in print in the three months to December.
MailOnline’s ad sales leapt 48% or £5 million to £14 million, while the print newspaper arm’s fell only £1 million to £53 million. Half of the 10 million daily visitors to MailOnline are on mobile. It now employs 500 staff, 140 in America.
Group revenues at DMGT, a minority shareholder in the Evening Standard, rose 6% on an underlying basis.
