Baltic Classifieds Shares Slide as Estonian Auto Market Weakness Hits Outlook

Baltic Classifieds Group (LON: BCG) shares dropped more than 12% to 273p on Wednesday after the company warned that revenue and profit growth will undershoot earlier expectations.

Ahead of its annual general meeting, the Estonia-based group said that weakness in the local auto market was weighing on its performance.

The government’s introduction of a new vehicle transaction and ownership tax has already depressed new car sales, and “early signs of recovery have stalled,” management said. As a result, Auto24, the company’s automotive platform, is delivering lower revenue than anticipated.

Baltic Classifieds now expects revenue and profit growth for the current financial year to be 3% to 4% below the guidance it gave in July. That marks a notable slowdown after a year of robust growth.

In July, BCG reported that for the year ended 30 April 2025, there was a 15% rise in revenue to €82.8 million, driven by double-digit gains in both business-to-consumer and consumer-to-consumer listings.

EBITDA increased 17% to €64.4 million, while operating profit climbed 40% to €53.5 million. Net income rose 40% to €44.8 million, reflecting strong demand across its online classifieds platforms in real estate, automotive and other consumer categories.

The group ended the year with net debt of just €3.6 million after repaying €25 million, and returned nearly €30 million to shareholders via dividends and buybacks.