Rightmove PLC's data defences are stronger than many investors appreciate, according to RBC Capital Markets, as it dived deeper into the property portal's artificial intelligence strategy.
A day after arguing the FTSE 100 company is more likely to benefit from AI than be disrupted by it, the bank hosted a breakfast with Rightmove’s chief data officer, chief executive and chief financial officer focused on its AI strategy.
RBC said it left believing the group’s “data moat was bigger and better than we had previously thought" and that AI is "strengthening not weakening" its proposition.
About 90% of Rightmove’s data is proprietary and not 'scrapeable', the analysts said. While basic listing details can be harvested from the web, they described that as “just the tip of Rightmove’s data iceberg”.
Property search may be the “front door”, but the real value lies in the behavioural signals behind it. Each search reveals buyer and seller intent. Rightmove structures that data to generate insights and new revenue opportunities.
RBC said conversational search is already increasing “dwell times”, meaning users spend longer on the site. That, in turn, creates more data and deeper insight.
The broker maintained its 'outperform' rating and a 765p price target, arguing AI should enhance the value of what it calls an unrivalled UK property dataset rather than undermine it.