Douglas Elliman Q4 2024 Earnings Report

Douglas Elliman EPS Results

• Actual EPS: $0.03
• Consensus EPS: -$0.08
• Beat/Miss: Beat by +$0.11
• One Year Ago EPS: N/A

Douglas Elliman Revenue Results

• Actual Revenue: $243.32 million
• Expected Revenue: N/A
• Beat/Miss: N/A
• YoY Revenue Growth: N/A

Douglas Elliman Announcement Details

• Quarter: Q4 2024
• Date: 3/11/2025
• Time: After Market Closes
• Conference Call Date: Tuesday, March 11, 2025
• Conference Call Time: 9:00AM ET

Douglas Elliman (NYSE:DOUG) (NYSE: DOUG) is a residential real estate services company that operates primarily through the Douglas Elliman Realty brand. Its core business is representing buyers and sellers in residential property transactions, including homes, condominiums, cooperatives and luxury properties.

The company also provides related real estate services, including new-development marketing, commercial real estate brokerage, relocation services, property management and other support for real estate owners, developers and consumers. Its development marketing business helps promote and sell newly constructed residential projects.

Douglas Elliman serves clients through offices and affiliated operations in major U.S. real estate markets, including New York, South Florida, California and Colorado, as well as other select markets. The company traces its roots to a New York real estate brokerage founded in 1911 and became an independent publicly traded company following its separation from Vector Group in 2021.

Douglas Elliman Q4 2024 Earnings Call Transcript

Key Takeaways

• Douglas Elliman reported a 13.6% increase in Q4 revenues to $243.3 million and full‐year revenues of $995.6 million, up from $955.6 million in 2023.
• Profitability improved meaningfully as Q4 adjusted EBITDA loss narrowed to $5.4 million from $16.1 million a year ago, and Q4 adjusted net income was $2.4 million versus a $13.7 million loss in 2023.
• The development marketing division commands a robust pipeline of approximately $27.7 billion in gross transaction value—including $18.1 billion in Florida—with Q4 revenues rising to $25.5 million from $9.5 million.
• Average price per home sale rose to $1.64 million in Q4 (from $1.58 million) and $1.67 million for the year (from $1.59 million), underscoring the company’s strength in the luxury segment.
• Liquidity remains strong with $145 million in cash and Treasury securities as of year‐end and January–February 2025 cash receipts up ~30% year‐over‐year, supporting ongoing strategic investments.

Presentation

[Operator]

Welcome to Douglas Elliman's fourth quarter and full year 2024 earnings conference call. This call is being recorded and simultaneously webcast. An archived version of the webcast will be available on the investor relations section of the company's website located at investors.elliman.com for one year. During this call, the terms adjusted EBITDA, unadjusted net income, or adjusted net loss will be used. These terms are non-GAAP financial measures and should be considered in addition to, but not as a substitute for, other measures of financial performance prepared in accordance with GAAP. Reconciliations to adjusted EBITDA, adjusted net income, and adjusted net loss are contained in the company's earnings release, which has been posted to the investor relations section of the company's website. Before the call begins, I would like to read a safe harbor statement.

[Operator]

The statements made during this conference call that are not historical facts are forward-looking statements that are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially. From those set forth or implied by forward-looking statements, these risks are described in more detail in the company's Securities and Exchange Commission filings. Now, I would like to turn the call over to Chief Executive Officer of Douglas Elliman, Michael S. Liebowitz.

[Michael S. Liebowitz, CEO at Douglas Elliman]

Good morning, and thank you for joining us. First, I am proud to report on the progress we have made since I was named Chief Executive Officer of Douglas Elliman in October as we lead this storied company through an exciting new chapter. With me today on the call is Bryant Kirkland, Chief Financial Officer. On today's call, we will discuss the current operating environment and Douglas Elliman's financial results for the three months and year ended December 31, 2024. All numbers presented this morning will be as of December 31, 2024, unless otherwise stated. We will then provide closing comments and open the call for questions. Before we turn to our fourth quarter 2024 results, I would like to start by summarizing the value we are creating at Douglas Elliman. We are building momentum.

[Michael S. Liebowitz, CEO at Douglas Elliman]

Our revenues increased in the fourth quarter of 2024 by 13.6% from revenues in the fourth quarter of 2023. Our cash receipts in January and February of 2025 were approximately 30% more than cash receipts in January and February of 2024. Our agents and employees are energized as we lead Douglas Elliman into a new era. We were honored once again to be ranked as the most trusted real estate brokerage in 2025 by Lifestory Research, an independent research firm. This ranking underscores the power of the Elliman brand providing our agents. Building on this trust and the power of our name, we are executing a strategic plan to continue to expand our revenue base with growth initiatives focused on recruiting and international expansion. We will be mindful of reducing costs as we now analyze all investments and ensure they achieve our internal return on investment targets.

[Michael S. Liebowitz, CEO at Douglas Elliman]

Our newly created strategic M&A and business development unit continues to explore complementary acquisitions and ancillary businesses to analyze investments to ensure they achieve ROI targets. The initiatives are transforming Douglas Elliman into a company with diversified revenue streams and a sustainable growth engine, and an industry leader driving innovation and technology. With that, I will turn it over to Bryant, who will discuss our performance and the trends shaping the residential real estate industry.

[Bryant Kirkland, CFO at Douglas Elliman]

Thank you, Michael, and the management team remains focused on Douglas Elliman's transformation. We are confident that the improvement in financial results that began in the second and third quarters of 2024 is positioning Douglas Elliman for long-term success. The fourth quarter results indicate our core operations are beginning to benefit from the expense reductions management has implemented, as well as the significant investments made in our development marketing division. Before reviewing the financial performance, we will provide some updates on trends in home sale pricing and development marketing, as well as accolades earned in some of our key markets. First, pricing for home sales remains strong. In the fourth quarter, our industry best average price per transaction rose to $1.64 million per home sale compared to $1.58 million per home sale in the comparable 2023 period.

[Bryant Kirkland, CFO at Douglas Elliman]

For the year, our average price per transaction is $1.67 million per home sale compared to $1.59 million in the 2023 period. We believe these data points are illustrative of Douglas Elliman's expertise in the luxury and ultra-luxury residential real estate markets that we are proud to serve. Second, our development marketing division remains the preeminent industry player with a pipeline of actively managed projects of approximately $27.7 billion in gross transaction value. Approximately $18.1 billion of gross transaction value is in Florida alone. In addition to this active pipeline, we have another $5 billion of gross transaction value coming to market through March 2026. We believe this foundation of business bodes well for the future, as we will recognize commission income from these projects when they close, which is generally between 2025 and 2029.

[Bryant Kirkland, CFO at Douglas Elliman]

We have already begun to see the momentum of this pipeline in the fourth quarter of 2024, with development marketing's revenue increased to $25.5 million from $9.5 million in the 2023 fourth quarter. Third, many of our brokerages continue to outperform their peers. We were recently named number one brokerage by sales volume on Long Island and the Hamptons, and in 2024, eclipsed sales records in Aspen, North Miami, and on the North Fork of Long Island. Transitioning to updates on our expense structure. We continue to manage investments across our markets by focusing on return on investments. In 2024, we reduced our operating expenses by $19.7 million from 2023 after excluding commissions, depreciation and amortization, unusual litigation, settlement and related expense, restructuring expenses, and non-cash stock compensation expenses. Now, turning to Douglas Elliman's financial results for the three months ended December 31st, 2024.

[Bryant Kirkland, CFO at Douglas Elliman]

Douglas Elliman has maintained ample liquidity, with cash and cash equivalents at December 31st, 2024, of approximately $135 million, as well as investments in U.S. Treasury securities of another $10 million for a total of $145 million. Historically, the first quarter is usually cash flow negative because of the seasonality of our business and the timing of annual cash bonuses, which are paid in March. However, the decline in cash and investments in 2025 to date has been significantly lower than previous years because of the increase in January and February cash receipts compared to 2024. I am pleased to report, after adjusting for the annual bonus payments, our liquidity remains strong, with adjusted cash, cash equivalents, and investments totalling approximately $140 million as of March 10th, 2025. The strength of our balance sheet provides a competitive advantage for Douglas Elliman as we implement the plan Michael has discussed earlier.

[Bryant Kirkland, CFO at Douglas Elliman]

Moving on to the operating performance of the business in the fourth quarter, Douglas Elliman reported $243.3 million in revenues compared to $214.1 million in the 2023 fourth quarter. Net loss for the fourth quarter was $6 million or $0.07 per diluted share compared to $14.8 million or $0.18 per diluted share in the 2023 fourth quarter. Adjusted EBITDA for the fourth quarter was a loss of $5.4 million compared to a loss of $16.1 million in the 2023 fourth quarter. Adjusted net income in the fourth quarter was $2.4 million or $0.03 a share compared to adjusted net loss of $13.7 million or $0.17 per share in the 2023 fourth quarter. Now, turning to Douglas Elliman's financial results for the year-ended December 31, 2024. Douglas Elliman reported $995.6 million in revenues compared to $955.6 million in 2023.

[Bryant Kirkland, CFO at Douglas Elliman]

Net loss attributed to Douglas Elliman was $76.3 million or $0.91 per diluted share compared to $42.6 million or $0.52 per diluted share in 2023. Adjusted EBITDA for the year-ended December 31, 2024, was a loss of $17.8 million compared to a loss of $39.9 million in 2023. Adjusted net loss for the year-ended December 31, 2024, was $24.09 million or $0.29 per diluted share compared to $40.1 million or $0.49 per diluted share in 2023. Thank you for your attention, and back to you, Michael.

[Michael S. Liebowitz, CEO at Douglas Elliman]

Thanks, Bryant. When we last spoke in November, I told you that I took on the CEO role because I believe in the strength of the Douglas Elliman brand and its bright future. These results show we are performing extremely well, and our best days are ahead for this company. With that, we will be happy to answer any questions. Operator?

[Operator]

Thank you. At this time, if you would like to ask a question, please press the star and one on your telephone keypad. You may remove yourself from the queue at any time by pressing star two. Once again, that is star and one to ask a question. We will pause for a moment to allow questions to queue. As a reminder, that is star and one to ask a question, pausing for another brief moment to allow questions to queue. I am seeing no questions today. Thank you for joining us on Douglas Elliman's quarterly earnings conference call. We hope you have a good day, and this will conclude our call.

Participants

Executives

• Michael S. Liebowitz, CEO
• Bryant Kirkland, CFO