Wall Street took a beating Monday, sending shares of major real estate companies plummeting and erasing fortunes across virtually every industry in the U.S.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost more than 507 points Monday, while the S&P 500 fell 54 points. The drop was just the latest in a string of declines that have plagued investors of late, leaving the market in the red for 2018. Monday also left the S&P trading at its lowest level since October 2017.
Real estate companies were not immune to Monday’s market drubbing, with major players seeing significant declines in their share prices. The declines in both the overall market and among real estate companies in particular do not bode well for the coming year, which many analysts believe will see further slowing in the housing market.
For now, though, here’s what happened to real estate stocks Monday:
Zillow
Credit: Yahoo
Zillow fell 4.38 percent and closed at $30.57 per share on Monday. That is less than half what it was in June, when prices per share soared to more than $65, their highest level ever.
Zillow’s market cap shrank overnight in August after it acquired Mortgage Lenders of America, with some observers arguing the move posed too much risk for the company.
Redfin
Redfin fell 3.33 percent and closed at $15.38 per share. The tech brokerage’s shares have been falling with some consistency in 2018. Though Redfin shares ended 2017 trading at more than $31, the price quickly fell in January. Despite several minor rallies, the shares have never recovered to their late 2017 highs.
During its most recent earnings report, Redfin revealed that its revenue had beaten analysts’ exceptions, though just slightly. The company also promised to be more conservative with its hiring practices in 2019, citing the potential for a slow down in the housing market.
Realogy
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Realogy, which owns numerous real estate brands including Coldwell Banker and Better Homes and Gardens, dropped 5.47 percent Monday. The company’s shares closed at $16.41.
As recently as October, some analysts believed the company — which saw leadership shakeups and plunged into iBuying this year — was undervalued, though others thought it was suffering during the beginning stages of a housing slowdown.
Realogy shares had a relatively strong first quarter then peaked in April at more than $27. Since then, they have steadily declined.
RE/MAX
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RE/MAX fell 2.43 percent Monday to close at $28.91 per share. The company’s shares are down nearly $20 since the beginning of the year. RE/MAX shares peaked in March, when they were trading at more than $60.
In February, the company became embroiled in a controversy over ethics violations by founder Dave Liniger and CEO Adam Contos.
eXp Realty
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Shares of exp World Holdings, the parent company of eXp Realty, dropped 3.65 percent Monday to close at $8.98.
Unlike many other real estate companies, however, eXp is actually slightly up compared to the beginning of January, when shares were trading around $7.50. However, Monday’s prices were still a far cry from what they were in September, when shares peaked at more than $19. The company saw several other rallies this year that sent its stock price closer to $20 a share.
