Countrywide's Shares Dive As Profits Fall

Shares in Countrywide, the UK's largest estate agent group, lost 20% after it warned of tough times in the market. Countrywide, whose brands include Bairstow Eves and Gascoigne Pees, made a £208.1m after-tax loss in 2017, versus a £17.5m profit in 2016. said about 150 head office jobs would go. The firm has been hit by a slowdown in the housing market as well as the rise of online agents such as Purplebricks. But by the close, the shares had pulled back to stand 1.6% down. The profit figures were also dragged lower by one-off costs as Countrywide continued to restructure the business. Read more on the BBC.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-43328796