SEATTLE, May 8, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Redfin Corporation (NASDAQ: RDFN) today announced financial results for the first quarter ended March 31, 2019. All financial measures, unless otherwise noted, are presented on a GAAP basis and include stock-based compensation as well as depreciation and amortization expenses.

Revenue increased 38% year-over-year to $110.1 million during the first quarter. Gross profit was $2.8 million, a decrease of 52% from $5.7 million in the first quarter of 2018. Gross margin was 3%, compared to 7% in the first quarter of 2018. Real estate services(1) gross profit was $5.1 million, a decrease of 24% from $6.8 million in the first quarter of 2018. Real estate services gross margin was 6%, compared to 9% in the first quarter of 2018. Operating expenses were $70.2 million, an increase of 64% from $42.9 million in the first quarter of 2018. Operating expenses were 64% of revenue, up from 54% in the first quarter of 2018.

Net loss was $67.2 million, compared to net loss of $36.4 million in the first quarter of 2018. Stock-based compensation was $6.4 million, up from $4.2 million in the first quarter of 2018. Depreciation and amortization was $1.6 million, down from $2.0 million in the first quarter of 2018. Interest income was $2.3 million and interest expense was $2.1 million, up from $0.6 million and zero, respectively, in the first quarter of 2018.

Net loss per share, basic and diluted, was $0.74, compared to net loss per share, basic and diluted, of $0.44 in the first quarter of 2018.

"Redfin's traffic and revenue growth accelerated in the first quarter, and agent productivity increased for the first time since the second quarter of 2017, all while our earnings were better than our projections," said Redfin CEO Glenn Kelman. "Demand has been especially strong for mortgage, title, RedfinNow and our concierge service for painting and staging listings, increasing our conviction that these new services can combine with our brokerage capabilities to let us solve customer problems no other real estate company can."

Highlights

• Reached market share of 0.83% of U.S. existing home sales by value in the first quarter of 2019, an increase of 0.02 percentage points from the fourth quarter of 2018, and an increase of 0.10 percentage points from the first quarter of 2018.(2)
• Continued to drive strong traffic growth, with visitors to our website and mobile application increasing by 20% over the first quarter of 2018.
• Saved Redfin homebuyers and sellers nearly $24 million in the first quarter, compared to a 2.5% commission typically charged by traditional agents.
• Launched Redfin.ca brokerage in Toronto and national search site on February 12. Redfin.ca now displays over 170,000 homes for sale across most provinces. From launch through the end of March, traffic to Redfin.ca increased by an average of 62% week over week. In the last week of March, over 165,000 people visited Redfin.ca.
• Launched a strategic alliance with RE/MAX in the U.S. and Canada that will expand our partner service to almost 5,000 U.S. zip codes and most provinces in Canada. This allows customers that come to our website to find a local real estate agent, even in areas where Redfin does not have capacity to serve customers.
• Expanded our brokerage service to Huntsville, Alabama. Redfin is now reaching customers across 91 markets and serves 78% of the U.S. population.
• Launched RedfinNow in Los Angeles and Dallas. RedfinNow is a service that buys homes directly from sellers for a seven percent fee, allowing them to move on with less hassle and more certainty. RedfinNow is also available in San Diego, Inland Empire, and Orange County, California, with plans to expand to additional markets this year.
• Further integrated RedfinNow into our brokerage operations in Dallas. When we meet with a seller about listing her home, our agent can also present a cash offer from RedfinNow, provided the home qualifies for RedfinNow and the seller requests it. We believe that most sellers want to have the opportunity to compare a cash offer with what they could get if they list on the open market with an agent. In Dallas, we've established a process to do this efficiently and we'll be rolling this out to certain other RedfinNow markets in the coming months.
• Launched RedfinNow Remote Offers. We can now give customers a cash offer remotely over the phone, without having to visit their house. Redfin can leverage Remote Offers to increase efficiency and expand RedfinNow to more markets across America.
• Announced an expansion of the Redfin Dallas operations by hiring engineering staff and expanding Redfin's mortgage and title businesses. With engineers working alongside our agents and mortgage and title teams, we will bring together technology and service to deliver a complete home-buying and selling solution.
• Launched a new pricing program in 11 markets to reward customers who both buy and sell with Redfin. In these markets, we'll charge a 1% listing fee for sellers who also buy with Redfin. Customers who only sell will pay a 1.5% listing fee, still a great value compared to traditional brokerages.
• Launched advertising campaign in 22 markets, including television, digital video, radio and outdoor media. The campaign is expected to run through May 2019.
• Launched influencer marketing campaign featuring home designer Bobby Berk, one of Queer Eye's Fab Five. The campaign started after Bobby Berk had a great experience using Redfin to find and buy his home in Los Angeles with a Redfin Agent.

(1) Prior to reporting our financial results for the second quarter ended June 30, 2018, we had one reportable segment ("real estate") that reflected revenue derived from commissions and fees charged on real estate services transactions closed by us or partner agents representing customers in buying and selling homes. Beginning with our financial results for the second quarter ended June 30, 2018, we recognized a new reportable segment ("properties") that reflects revenue from when we sell homes that we previously bought directly from homeowners. Concurrent with our recognition of the new "properties" segment, we changed the name of our "real estate" segment to "real estate services." Prior to our financial results for the second quarter ended June 30, 2018, we included the results from our "properties" segment as part of our "other" segment.

(2) We calculate the aggregate value of U.S. home sales by multiplying the total number of U.S. existing home sales by the mean sale price of these homes, each as reported by the National Association of REALTORS®. We calculate our market share by aggregating the home value of real estate services transactions conducted by our lead agents or our partner agents. Then, in order to account for both the sell- and buy-side components of each transaction, we divide that value by two-times the estimated aggregate value of U.S. home sales.

Business OutlookThe following forward-looking statements reflect Redfin's expectations as of May 8, 2019, and are subject to substantial uncertainty.

For the second quarter of 2019 we expect:

• Total revenue between $183.7 million and $193.1 million, representing year-over-year growth between 29% and 35% compared to the second quarter of 2018. Properties segment revenue between $30.0 million and $35.0 million is included in the guidance provided.
• Net loss between $14.7 million and $11.3 million, compared to net income of $3.2 million in the second quarter of 2018. This guidance includes approximately $6.2 million of expected stock-based compensation and $1.9 million of expected depreciation and amortization.

Conference CallRedfin will webcast a conference call to discuss the results at 1:30 p.m. Pacific Time today. The webcast will be open to the public at http://investors.redfin.com. The webcast will remain available on the investor relations website for at least three months following the conference call.

Forward-Looking StatementsThis press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of federal securities laws, including statements regarding expansion of our partner program and our RedfinNow operations, our integration of technology and service to offer a complete solution, and the continuation of our advertising campaign, each as described under Highlights, and our future operating results, as described under Business Outlook. We believe our expectations related to these forward-looking statements are reasonable, but actual results may turn out to be materially different. For factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from the forward-looking statements in this press release, please see the risks and uncertainties identified under the heading "Risk Factors" in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2018, as supplemented by our Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended March 31, 2019, both of which are available on our Investor Relations website at http://investors.redfin.com and on the SEC website at www.sec.gov. All forward-looking statements reflect our beliefs and assumptions only as of the date of this press release. We undertake no obligation to update forward-looking statements to reflect future events or circumstances.

About RedfinRedfin (www.redfin.com) is a technology-powered residential real estate company. Founded by software engineers, we run the country's #1 most-visited brokerage website and offer a host of online tools to consumers, including the Redfin Estimate. We represent people buying and selling homes in over 90 markets throughout the United States and Canada. Our mission is to redefine real estate in the consumer's favor. In a commission-driven industry, we put the customer first. We do this by pairing our own agents with our own technology to create a service that is faster, better, and costs less. Since our launch in 2006 through 2018, we have helped customers buy or sell more than 170,000 homes worth more than $85 billion.

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