RBC says NAR ruling could be positive for CoStar’s Homes.com

RBC Capital analyst Ashish Sabadra keeps an Outperform rating on CoStar Group (CSGP) with a $109 price target after a three-judge panel for the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in D.C. ruled in a 2-1 decision that the Department of Justice can reopen its investigation into the National Association of Realtors. The analyst believes the two most relevant issues are preventing steering and allowing co-mingling of MLS/non-MLS data. These could be positive for CoStar’s Homes.com monetization model and could significantly expand the addressable market, the analyst tells investors in a research note. There is potential for the DOJ to issue a Statement of Interest preventing steering and allowing co-mingling of MLS and non-MLS data, says RBC. It believes the latter could be “significantly positive” for the listing websites, including Homes.com.