Start here if you're new
what it is
It sells property data, listing sites, and 3D building scans.
how it gets paid
Last year Costar made $3.2B in revenue.
why it's growing
Revenue grew 18.7% last year. 79.0% gross margin is the tell. You can spend more on sales and still keep most of each dollar.
what just happened
Latest quarter revenue was on the order of ~$800M (not $2.3B— that would overshoot the ~$3.2B FY base). Earnings were still thin at the operating line.
At a glance
B++ balance sheet — above average — nothing keeping you up at night
55/100 earnings predictability — expect surprises
76.9x trailing p/e — you're paying up for this one
11.5% return on capital — nothing to write home about
xvary composite: 45/100 — below average
What they do
It sells property data, listing sites, and 3D building scans.
You are not buying a website. You are buying a workflow that real estate teams do not want to rebuild. CoStar has 500-plus Homes.com reps, 150 more in training, and LoopNet is the most heavily trafficked commercial real estate marketplace on the web. That is a lot of muscle behind a business with a 79.0% gross margin.
How they make money
$3.2B
annual revenue · their business grew +18.7% last year
total revenue
$3.2B
+18.7%
The products that matter
property data and analytics platform
Commercial Real Estate Platform
$3.2B revenue
the snapshot data does not break out segment revenue, so the platform itself is the story. it carries the full $3.2B business and grew 18.7% last year.
entire revenue base
Key numbers
76.9x
trailing p/e
That means you pay 76.9 dollars for each dollar of past earnings. So what: the stock already prices in a clean run.
79.0%
gross margin
That means 79 cents of each sales dollar stays after direct costs. So what: the business still has software-like economics.
$3.2B
annual revenue
That is total yearly sales. So what: CoStar is a big business, not a small growth story.
-2.2%
operating margin
Negative operating margin matches the hook— growth spend can outrun operating profit even when gross margin is high.
Financial health
B++
strength
- balance sheet grade B++ — above average financial health
- risk rank 3 — safer than 50% of stocks
- price stability 55 / 100
- long-term debt $993M (3% of capital)
- net profit margin 25.0% net margin — if operating margin is negative in the same window, reconcile non-operating items in the filing
- return on equity 12% — $0.12 profit for every $1 investors have put in
B++ — functional but not a standout on the balance sheet.
Total return vs. market
You invested $10,000 in CSGP 3 years ago → it's now worth $8,060.
The index would have given you $14,770.
source: institutional data · total return
What just happened
missed estimates
Quarter revenue ~$800M, but operating earnings were still ugly.
Latest quarter revenue jumped 182% vs. prior year, helped by a larger business mix after the Matterport deal. Gross margin held at 79.0%, so the core product economics stayed strong even while profits lagged.
~$800M
quarter revenue
$0.09
quarter EPS
79.0%
gross margin
the number that mattered
79.0% gross margin is the tell. You can spend more on sales and still keep most of each dollar.
-
the timeline disappointed some investors who had hoped for a faster ramp.
-
the company has expanded its homes.com sales team.
-
this group of employees now totals over 500 representatives, with another 150 in training.while per-rep productivity dips during rapid hiring phases, management sees consistent upward momentum and expects the investment to pay off eventually.
-
the medium-term outlook is solid.
-
management expects 2026 revenue between $3.78 billion and $3.82 billion, an 18% increase, with adjusted ebitda of $740 million-$800 million.
source: company earnings report, 2026
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What could go wrong
the #1 risk is sales-force spending outrunning sales productivity. CoStar is hiring aggressively, but expected EPS of $0.40 alongside 20% revenue growth shows the cost is arriving before the payoff is proven.
med
sales-force productivity lag
over 500 representatives are already on the roster and another 150 are in training. if those people take longer to ramp than expected, margins stay under pressure.
near-term earnings are the first place you see it. the current setup already points to EPS down 154% from last year.
med
commercial real estate activity slowdown
this is still a real estate information business. if transaction activity or customer budgets weaken, the full $3.2B revenue base feels it.
the moat helps retention. it does not make the business immune to a softer property market.
med
multiple compression
76.9x trailing earnings is expensive for a company earning a 14.3% net margin and just 5.5% on capital. if execution slips, the valuation can do the damage even without a revenue collapse.
you do not need terrible business results to get a disappointing stock result. you just need results that stop looking premium.
all three risks sit under a stock still valued at roughly $28B on $3.2B of revenue, so small operating misses can get amplified by a rich multiple.
source: institutional data · regulatory filings · risk analysis
Pay attention to
metric
revenue growth holding near 18.7%
the top line still looks premium. if that number slips hard, the valuation argument gets much tougher.
trend
whether new reps start paying for themselves
500 reps plus 150 in training is a bet on future sales productivity. this is the operational hinge in the story.
calendar
the next earnings print
watch whether the $0.8B revenue and $0.40 EPS setup improves or gets pushed out again.
risk
valuation versus operating quality
76.9x earnings with 55 / 100 predictability leaves you very little room for a messy quarter.
Analyst rankings
short-term outlook
bottom 5%
momentum score 5 — the weakest rating. in human-speak, analysts think this is likely to lag most stocks in the near term.
risk profile
average
stability score 3 — this is not a bunker stock, but it is not a rollercoaster either.
chart momentum
below average
technical score 4 — the tape is still working against you after the drop from $97 to $65.
earnings predictability
55 / 100
earnings are harder to forecast here than in steadier software names. expect noise, not clockwork.
source: institutional data
Institutional activity
institutions have been net buying for 3 consecutive quarters — 454 buyers vs. 365 sellers in 3q2025. total institutional holdings: 0.4B shares. net buying for 3 quarters.
source: institutional data
Price targets
3-5 year target range
$54
$124
$65
current price
$89
target midpoint · +36% from current · 3-5yr high: $160 (+145% · 25% ann'l return)
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