Winkworth Shares Fall as Legal Battle With Chair Hits Profit Outlook

M Winkworth Plc (LON: WINK), which franchises a UK-wide network of estate agency offices, saw its shares fall sharply in early trade today after saying legal costs from a High Court dispute with its Non-Executive Chair, Simon Agace, will push full-year reported profit materially below market expectations.

Shares fell to 162.5p, down 5.8% from yesterday’s close of 172.5p, having opened at 157.5p after the pre-market announcement.

Statutory profit before tax fell 5% to £0.78m from £0.83m a year earlier, after £0.11m of exceptional legal costs in the period. Network revenue across Winkworth’s franchised offices was broadly stable at £31.6m, down 1% from £32.0m, as a 3% rise in lettings revenue partly offset a 5% fall in sales revenue against a strong prior-year comparator.

Chief executive Dominic Agace said: “After a very strong H1 in sales in 2025, our year-on-year performance in H1 2026 against a more challenging background was robust. While the path of interest rates in the UK, more than ever a key determinant for the property market, is hard to read, we remain confident of our position and the further outperformance of our franchisees.”

Management said underlying profit before exceptional costs should come in slightly ahead of market expectations, but reported profit before tax will be materially below them because of the Agace dispute. Winkworth began High Court proceedings against its Chair in August, alleging breaches of confidentiality, of his relationship agreement, and of duties under the Companies Act 2006, and sought an interim injunction.

A consent order adjourned that injunction application to the 5th of October, with Agace giving certain undertakings in the meantime, and no court determination on the allegations has yet been made. A further £376,000 of legal and advisory costs were incurred or committed between 1 July and 15 September, with the total bill still unresolved ahead of that hearing.