Zillow Group, Inc. (ZG)
NEUTRALFundamental
52
Price
$38.30
Market Cap
$8.27B
Part 1 · What the company is worth
Overview
Zillow runs the website and app most home shoppers in the United States use to browse listings, estimate what a home is worth, and find a real-estate agent. It does not buy or sell homes itself: it makes money by connecting the people looking at its site with agents, lenders and property managers who pay to reach them. The audience is the product; real estate transactions happen off Zillow's books.
How it makes money
Most revenue comes from real-estate agents and brokerages who pay for leads and advertising placement tied to Zillow's traffic, plus a growing slice from advertising sold to landlords and property managers listing rentals, and from fees earned originating mortgages. Because Zillow is paid for attention and leads rather than for closing a sale, its revenue rises and falls with how many people are actively browsing homes, not with home prices themselves.
Revenue by segment
Advertising and software sold to real-estate agents and brokerages, plus new-construction listings — the core of the business.
Advertising and listing tools sold to landlords and property managers for rental units, the fastest-growing part of the business.
Revenue from originating home loans and from advertising sold to mortgage lenders on Zillow's site.
Mainly display advertising not tied to the other three lines.
Competitive moat
Network effects · NarrowMore home shoppers on Zillow's site makes it more attractive for agents to advertise there, and more agent listings make the site more useful to shoppers — a loop that has made Zillow the largest audience in U.S. real estate search. It is not unbreakable: a large share of listing traffic depends on data-sharing agreements with brokers and portals, and a competitor like Google inserting listings directly into search results could intercept that audience before it reaches Zillow at all.
What drives demand
CyclicalZillow's revenue tracks the health of the housing market: low inventory, fewer new listings, and volatile mortgage rates reduce the transactions that fund agent advertising budgets, even if browsing traffic stays high. Rentals and mortgages add some diversification, but the core business still rises and falls with how active the housing market is.
Key risks
- Sensitivity to housing market conditions — Low housing inventory, fewer new for-sale listings, and volatile mortgage rates can reduce both the number of transactions consumers complete and demand for advertising from agents.
- Search platforms bypassing Zillow — Large search engines have begun showing home listings directly in their own results, which could divert the traffic Zillow depends on before it ever reaches Zillow's site.
- Legal and regulatory disputes — The company faces litigation, including antitrust claims tied to a rentals partnership with a competitor, from consumers, industry participants and government bodies, which could result in costs or forced changes to its business practices.
The case for
Buyers argue that Zillow's audience lead in real-estate search is difficult to replicate, that rentals and mortgages are diversifying revenue away from pure for-sale transactions and growing faster than the core business, and that full-year revenue growth well ahead of the housing industry's own growth shows Zillow taking share regardless of the market cycle.
The case against
Sellers fear that a business built on advertising to agents remains hostage to housing transaction volumes it does not control, that large search platforms inserting listings directly into their own results could erode the traffic advantage Zillow relies on, and that ongoing litigation adds cost and uncertainty on top of an already cyclical business.
Written by the editors, published on August 18, 2026
Direct competitors
Who this company fights with for the same customers
No editorial profile for this company yet
No competitor list for this company yet.
Balance Sheet & Liquidity
Revenue
$2.81B
Trailing 12 months (through 6/30/2026)
Net Income
$55M
Trailing 12 months (through 6/30/2026)
Free Cash Flow
$235M
Total Equity
$4.88B
Total Liabilities
$801M
Current Ratio
1.92
Interest Coverage
0.67
Debt/EBITDA
2.43
Earnings Per Share
Revenue & Net Income
Free Cash Flow
Income Breakdown
Historical statement
Margins over time
Debt over time
How heavy the debt is
Growth grid
Growth — Revenue
Fair Value Estimation
Fair Value
$22.39
Current Price
$38.30
Margin of Safety
-71.1%
Fair Value Range
$14.56 - $30.23
Estimation Methods
Valuation Metrics
P/E Ratio
172.50
ROE
0.5%
P/B Ratio
0.36
P/FCF
6.09
Gross Margin
72.9%
ROIC
0.2%
Profitability Radar
Value Creation (Economic Moat)
ROIC
0.2%
WACC
14.8%
ROIC − WACC
-14.6 pp
ROIC is below the cost of capital — the company is destroying value for every dollar invested.
Fundamental Analysis Criteria
Passed (13)
- EPS shows upward trend
- Gross Margin 72.9%
- P/FCF 6.09
- P/B Ratio 0.36
- Debt/Equity ratio
- Positive Free Cash Flow
- Current Ratio
- Debt/EBITDA
- Analyst Consensus 57% Buy
- Earnings Surprise avg 5.8%
- Earnings Quality (OCF/NI) 7.05
- Net Margin Trend 2.0% vs -2.6%
- Piotroski F-Score 7/9
Failed (12)
- Price CAGR 0.09%
- ROIC 0.2%
- Operating Margin 0.4%
- CapEx intensity
- Interest Coverage
- Return on Tangible Assets
- Low reliance on intangibles
- Price below Graham Number
- DCF valuation (Unknown)
- ROE 1.2%
- Revenue Growth 5Y -5.0%
- Share Dilution 9.5%
Unavailable (2)
- Dividend Payout NaN%
- PEG Ratio (need PE > 0 and growth > 0)
Piotroski F-Score
Strong financial health
Earnings Quality
High quality: earnings backed by cash
Share Dilution
Issuing new shares, diluting ownership
Governance
Executive Team
| Name | Title | Age |
|---|---|---|
| Mr. Richard N. Barton | Co-Founder & Co-Executive Chair | 57 |
| Mr. Lloyd D. Frink | Co-Founder, Co-Executive Chairman & President | 60 |
| Mr. Jeremy Wacksman | CEO & Director | 48 |
| Mr. Jeremy Hofmann | COO & CFO | 39 |
| Ms. Jennifer A. Rock | Chief Accounting Officer | 43 |
| Mr. David A. Beitel | Chief Technology Officer | 55 |
| Mr. Bradley Allen Berning | Vice President of Investor Relations | - |
| Mr. Dan Spaulding | Chief People Officer | 48 |
| Mr. Errol G. Samuelson | Chief Industry Development Officer | 59 |
| Mr. Christopher Roberts | Chief Product Officer | - |
Part 2 · The price and when to enter
This part won't tell you whether the company is worth owning: it helps you choose when to buy it, once the fundamentals have convinced you. Inside: technical analysis, potential, historical drawdowns, gamma exposure.
Latest News
Recent headlines for ZG, sourced from Markets Gazette.
- 2/27/2026POSITIVEZillow predicts major mortgage rate change, homebuying shift
Real estate platform Zillow anticipates a significant turning point in the U.S. housing market, with mortgage rates expected to decline. This prediction suggests that affordability, long a distant dream for many homebuyers, could finally become a tangible reality. A drop in rates would make homeownership more accessible, stimulating demand and potentially revitalizing the sector. For investors, this outlook points to a potential strengthening of the real estate market, benefiting companies directly tied to the industry, such as Zillow itself, which would see increased transactions on its platform.
via Markets Gazette