ONLINE property portal PropertyGuru posted a net income of S$1.1 million for the fourth quarter ended December, reversing from a net loss of S$5.2 million a year prior and marking the second sequential quarter of positive earnings.

This came as revenue for the quarter rose 3.5 per cent to S$41.5 million from S$40.1 million in Q4 FY2022, on the back of growth in its Singapore marketplaces.

Adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortisation (Ebitda) surged to S$8.9 million from S$503,000 in the corresponding period last year, based on its financials released on Friday (Mar 1).

Marketplaces revenue increased 4.1 per cent year on year to S$39.9 million, as a strong performance in its Singapore market helped to offset challenging market conditions in Vietnam, said the New York Stock Exchange-listed real estate platform.

Earnings per share for the period stood at S$0.01, reversing from a loss per share of S$0.03 a year ago.

For the full year, net loss narrowed 88.2 per cent to S$15.3 million from S$129.2 million, while revenue increased 10.5 per cent to S$150.1 million from S$135.9 million.

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Hari Krishnan, chief executive officer and managing director of PropertyGuru, said: “Despite less-than-favourable market conditions in Vietnam and Malaysia, we were able to achieve these results by being laser-focused on optimising costs, adopting internal process automation, improving code quality and productivity.”

On Feb 27, the group announced it would lay off 79 employees, or 5 per cent of its workforce, as part of a strategic review to “future-proof” the business in volatile markets. It is also closing two out of nine branches in Vietnam relating to its marketplace business.

The portal’s chief financial officer, Joe Dische, highlighted that all the marketplaces – namely Singapore, Malaysia and Vietnam – recorded positive adjusted Ebitda. He also noted that corporate expenses as a percentage of overall revenue decreased to 37 per cent in 2023 from 39 per cent in 2022.

“Looking to 2024, we will continue to focus on expanding internal operating leverage as we look to improve profitability.

“We are introducing a full-year 2024 revenue outlook of S$165 million to S$180 million and a full-year adjusted Ebitda outlook of S$22 million to S$26 million,” Dische added.

Vietnam continues to pose a challenge for PropertyGuru, as the government continues to restabilise the property market following anti-corruption and credit-accessibility issues that evolved into consumer-credit concerns in 2023. Dische highlighted that cost-management actions have helped improve adjusted Ebitda margins to 13 per cent, despite a drop in revenue.

While Grab has announced a US$500 million share buyback programme, PropertyGuru has not considered such an initiative so far, said Dische. The money raised from the company’s listing was to pursue potential mergers and acquisitions (M&A) opportunities, such as its purchase of home-services provider Sendhelper.

“For now, we are pursuing our M&A strategy. We’ll obviously... monitor the market and reappraise as time goes on,” he said.

He added that the property portal will continue to hire selectively, and focus investments into innovation and automation plays, including generative artificial intelligence.

“Going forward, we’re moving to a more sustainable level of profitability, powered by the future-proofing of our core business model and target investments to deliver long-term growth,” Dische said.