London, June 8, 2026, 16:05 BST
Autotrader Group shares were steady around £4.69 late Monday on the London Stock Exchange after the company revealed more share buybacks. The stock traded at 468.80p at 15:47 BST, basically flat for the session, according to Investors Chronicle/LSEG data. Autotrader is down 40.66% in the last year. The London market is open from 08:00 to 16:30 BST.
The buyback is in focus now. Shares finished Friday up 1.98% at £4.69, ahead of the FTSE 100, but the stock is still well under last year’s highs.
Auto Trader is leaning on capital returns to help support its stock as it faces a tougher environment with dealers. Back in May, the board said the share price didn’t match up with the company’s fundamentals, and it outlined plans to return about £600 million to shareholders in financial year 2027. Around £500 million of that is set for buybacks. That’s when a company snaps up its own shares, usually trimming the share count and boosting per-share earnings.
Autotrader said Monday it bought 5.55 million ordinary shares for cancellation from June 1 to June 5, using Merrill Lynch International as broker. The firm paid volume-weighted average prices between 444.2608p and 468.7772p. After these deals, total voting rights at Autotrader are 799.9 million.
Autotrader filed its annual report and put out a notice for its annual general meeting. The AGM is set for July 16 at its Manchester office. The notice called Autotrader the UK’s biggest automotive marketplace and listed it as a FTSE 100 company. Investors will vote on board seats and capital moves at the AGM.
Auto Trader posted revenue of £624.3 million and operating profit of £392.7 million for the year ended March 31. Basic EPS was 34.17p. CEO Nathan Coe said the group “continued to grow both revenue and profits” even with tough conditions. Autotrader
Deal Builder is still the problem for the company. It’s their online tool pushing more of the buying process digital. After earnings, Coe told investors that more cancellations have hit both 2026 and are weighing on the 2027 run-rate. But he said since year-end, retailer numbers, stock, and upsells are up, and “we are past the low point.” Seeking Alpha
UK online marketplace stocks are in focus, though the comparison isn’t straightforward. Rightmove is headed for a FTSE 250 listing after dropping out of the FTSE 100, following FTSE Russell’s review on June 22. That move spotlights how quickly index positions can change for growth stocks that lose value.
London stocks were barely moving. The FTSE 100 hovered at 10,370.53 this afternoon. Dan Coatsworth, head of markets at AJ Bell, said some investors were picking up defensive shares as a “just in case” move if things slip. London South East
But the risks are clear. If dealer profits slip again, Deal Builder pushback picks up, or listed inventory on the site drops, the buyback might fall short of moving the valuation. Fewer shares support the numbers, but won’t patch up soft customer demand.
Buyback updates, the July AGM authorization, and fresh numbers on paid stock and retailers are next up for Auto Trader. For now, it’s not really about a big new growth run. The main question is whether the company, sitting on cash, can keep things steady as it tries to rebuild trust with dealers.
