Foxtons Replace Finance Chief After Poor First Quarter

Estate agent says sales at record lows as investors query 'fat cat' bonuses

The share price of Chiswick-based estate agent Foxtons has been hit hard after a trading statement this week outlined the challenging nature of the London property market.

The company are parting company with their finance director Mark Berry ‘by mutual agreement’ and said, ‘sales volumes continue to be at record low levels and ongoing Brexit uncertainty is impacting consumer confidence.’ Former Marks & Spencer and Laird plc executive Richard Harris, is to become the new chief financial officer.

Earlier this year Foxtons announced no dividend would be paid for 2018 and reported a fall in core earnings. In their latest statement to the Stock Exchange they said that trading this year had been ‘in line with expectations’ with revenues falling further and no recovery in April. Group revenue dipped to £23.8 million for the quarter ended 31 March, compared with £24.5 million in the previous year with sales revenues down by 13%.

The company said that it remained sound financially with net cash of around £15 million at the end of the quarter, and that its letting business continued to perform well.

Around a fifth of shareholders in the company at the recent Annual General Meeting voted against a remuneration report which awarded CEO Nick Budden and Mark Berry £389,000 in bonuses for 2018 despite the company’s swing into the red. They made losses of £17.2 million overall compared to a £6.5 million profit in 2017.Overall, Budden was paid £910,000 and Berry received £480,000. The size of the vote against the report means that the company will be listed by the Investment Association trade body as a firm which has been hit by a significant shareholder revolt over ‘fat cat’ pay .

May 21, 2019