Today, I cover Zillow Group (ZG -0.17%) (Z 0.02%), which many consider the best of breed housing technology company. Zillow competes against businesses such as Redfin (RDFN -2.07%) and Opendoor Technologies (OPEN 0.70%). Is Zillow the Amazon (AMZN -2.56%) of real estate?
The company's solution is called Zillow 2.0, and its goal is to "create a radically simpler real estate transaction through technology, service and integration." Today's consumers want information at their fingertips, and they demand streamlined shopping experiences that leverage technology. The world has evolved tremendously over the past decade, and expectations are constantly increasing. Today's business environment is all about speed and convenience, and consumers leverage technology from companies such as Netflix (NFLX -9.09%), Uber (UBER -2.94%), Lyft (LYFT -3.35%), GrubHub (JTKWY -5.14%), DoorDash (DASH -2.24%), Expedia (EXPE 0.55%), Airbnb (ABNB -3.18%), Carvana (CVNA 0.29%), and others to enable these experiences.
Housing is the next logical step in the value chain, and Zillow is an early leader in this disruptive technology space. In Q1 2021, Zillow reported $1.22 billion in revenue, and it was able to beat initial guidance in all segments. Perhaps most impressive, Zillow Group reported an astonishing 169% year-over-year growth in its mortgage segment. This could certainly be a risk for banks and companies such as Rocket Companies (RKT 1.30%). One of Zillow's risks is its iBuying segment. Zillow purchased 1,856 homes and sold 1,965 homes in Q1 2021.
I discuss this in more detail and provide my opinions in the video below. I also discuss the stock price and whether I think the stock is a buy now.
*Stock prices used in the below video were during the trading day of July 15, 2021. The video was published on July 15, 2021.
