Virtually-focused brokerage giant eXp, which has seen significant growth and attention over the course of the pandemic, started off 2022 strong with strong growth in both agents and revenue, bringing in $1 billion during the first quarter and seeing its agent count jump 55% year-over-year, according to its first earnings report of the year, released Wednesday.
“eXp’s strong momentum continued through the first quarter as even more agents joined what we believe is the most agent-centric brokerage on the planet, fueling the fastest-growing agent base in the history of real estate,” said Glenn Sanford, founder and CEO of eXp in a statement. “It is our goal to be over 100,000 agents and brokers worldwide by the end of the year.”
The company recently surpassed 80,000 agents as many in the industry have flocked to the company’s unique virtual model during the last two years—though investors have not been as keen on the company recently as eXp’s stock has lost almost 70% in value over the last six months, after skyrocketing in early 2021.
eXp stock spiked in early trading following the earnings report, opening nearly 10% higher at around $16 a share. In the report, the company also announced an increase in its stock buyback program, from $400 million to $500 million, as well as a $0.04 dividend per share on common stock.
“{The stock buyback} reflects our leadership team’s confidence in our ability to deliver sustainable growth in our business over the long-term,” eXp CFO Jeff Whiteside said in a statement.
Agent growth has been a hallmark of eXp’s rapid expansion, as well as its forays into international markets, with a presence in 20 countries this quarter and plans to enter New Zealand, Chile and United Arab Emirates in the future.
The company has not highlighted the proportion of domestic to international agents. Q1 growth represented a 55% increase in total agents from a year ago.
Number of transactions closed also rose 55% to 114,305 this quarter, while dollar volume rose 69% to $41.4 billion year-over-year. eXp closed the quarter with $116 million cash on hand, and a net income of $8.86 million, an increase of 83%.
“eXp was built to thrive in challenging market conditions and despite the headwinds affecting the broader housing market, we are well-positioned to capture increased market share,” said Sanford.
In an earnings call following the release, Sanford went further to say that eXp’s growth was particularly impressive considering the speed at which interest rates have risen this year, and adding so many agents defied a trend of the industry actually losing REALTORS®.
“From our perspective we feel really good about the numbers, but again there are some macroeconomic factors that we’re starting to see actually play,” he said.
Jesse Williams is RISMedia’s associate online editor. Email him your real estate news to jwilliams@rismedia.com.
