By Guy Taylor
Onthemarket will be snapped up by the US-based commercial property giant Costar in a deal valued at £99m, it was announced this morning.
The deal represents a significant premium of 56 per cent to Onthemarket’s 70.5p share price at close on Wednesday, according to a statement on the London Stock Exchange this morning.
A source close to the talks told the outlet that the swoop from Nasdaq-listed Costar, which has a market cap of over $33bn (£27bn), would enable Onthemarket muscle in on competitors such as Rightmove and Zoopla.
Costar said today it believed the acquisition represented an “attractive strategic entry point” for the group into the UK residential property market.
The takeover is backed by 29.5 per cent of the companies’ share capital, including its six largest shareholders.
The firm is a major player in the US property market and has made a number of acquisitions in recent years, including a $156m takeover of the residential real estate website Homes.com in 2021.
Jason Tebb, chief executive officer of Onthemarket said: “Partnering with Costar will significantly accelerate our strategy with the clear target of becoming the market leader, whilst staying committed to fair and sustainable pricing.”
“Costar will bring industry-leading global expertise and significant financial firepower to invest in OnTheMarket, allowing us to accelerate our transformation of the sector.”
Andy Florance, founder and chief executive of Costar, said: “We believe the acquisition of OnTheMarket represents an attractive and efficient entry point for Costar into the estimated £8trn United Kingdom residential property market. We are excited to welcome the OnTheMarket team to the CoStar family.”
