Bridgemarq Real Estate Services Inc. (BRE) Earnings Call Transcript
August 13, 2026
Earnings Call Speaker Segments
Good morning. My name is Sylvie, and I would like to welcome everyone to the Bridgemarq Real Estate Services Inc. 2026 Second Quarter Results Conference Call. Note that this call is being recorded. [Operator Instructions] We will answer these questions following the dial-in questions after the presentation, time permitting. I would now like to introduce Ms. Anne-Elise Allegritti, Director of Investor Relations at Bridgemarq Real Estate Services. Ms. Allegritti, you may begin your conference.
Thank you, Sylvie. Good morning, everyone, and thank you for being with us on the call today. I am joined in the room by our Chief Executive Officer, Spencer Enright, and our Chief Financial Officer, Wallace Wang. They will begin with a brief overview of our company's second quarter results. Wallace will then discuss our financial results in more detail, and Spencer will conclude by providing some remarks on operational highlights, company updates, and market developments. Following their remarks, Spencer and Wallace will be happy to take your questions. Please note, only analyst questions will be permitted on the dial-in line. All others who wish to submit a question are welcome to do so via the Q&A feature on the webcast. You can find a link to the webcast on the events page of our website. I want to remind everyone that some of the remarks expressed during this call may contain forward-looking statements. You should not place reliance on these forward-looking statements because they involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties that may cause the actual results and performance of the company to differ materially from the anticipated future results expressed or implied by such statements. I encourage everyone to review the cautionary language found in our news release and on all of our regulatory filings. These can be found on our website and on SEDAR+. We will now pass the call over to Mr. Spencer Enright to give a brief overview of our second quarter results.
Thank you, Anne-Elise, and good morning, everyone. In the second quarter, Bridgemarq continued to strengthen its leadership position in the Canadian real estate industry through strategic investments in technology, innovation, brand leadership, while enhancing the company's financial flexibility to support future growth. Although real estate market conditions remain mixed, we continue to execute our long-term strategy, enhancing the tools and resources available to our network, while positioning the business to capitalize on opportunities as the housing market continues to gradually stabilize. Revenue for the second quarter amounted to $97.5 million compared to $108 million generated in the second quarter of 2025. This is reflective of persistent weakness in the Canadian real estate market and a decrease in the number of realtors within our Royal LePage network. On July 16th, we announced a strategic capital allocation plan to allow us the opportunity to make significant investments in AI and other technology frameworks and growing the business. The new expected annualized dividend rate of $0.05 per restricted voting share, payable on a quarterly basis if and when declared by the board. The board is expected to announce the first quarterly dividend under the new framework when we announce our Q3 earnings in November. I want to acknowledge this decision and the feedback we have received from some shareholders. We recognize that the changes to our dividend are significant and impactful. Rest assured this was a decision the board and management approached with careful consideration. The Canadian residential real estate industry is entering a period of meaningful change, driven by consolidation and accelerating technological innovation. We believe this new framework positions Bridgemarq to respond proactively and capitalize on these emerging industry trends. Today's real estate market also presents compelling opportunities to deploy capital strategically, allowing us to invest in initiatives that we believe will generate sustainable long-term value for shareholders. This framework is designed to strengthen our financial position, enhance our flexibility to pursue strategic acquisitions and growth opportunities, and support disciplined capital allocation with the goal of generating long-term shareholder value. And with that, I'll turn the call over to Wallace for a closer look at our second quarter financial performance.
Thank you, Spencer, and good morning, everyone. As Spencer mentioned, revenue during the second quarter of the year amounted to $97.5 million, a decrease over the $108 million generated in the second quarter of 2025. This was primarily due to a lower agent count and softer real estate market conditions. The number of realtors in our network currently sits at 19,352. This includes approximately 2,250 agents operating within the company's corporately-owned real estate brokerages in the Greater Toronto Area, Greater Vancouver Area, and within the province of Quebec. In the second quarter, the company generated a net loss of $1.2 million compared to a net loss of $5.4 million in 2025. As a reminder, the company's net earnings are impacted by the fair value adjustments on the exchangeable units, which is directly related to the change in the market price of Bridgemarq's restricted voting shares. In the second quarter, adjusted net earnings, which consider our operating earnings before certain non-cash, non-operating adjustments and payments to holders of exchangeable units, amounted to $0.9 million, down from the $2.2 million reported in the same period last year. Cash provided by operating activities amounted to $8.9 (sic) [ $8.1 million ] million in the second quarter of 2026 compared to $5.9 million in the same quarter last year. The increase was primarily due to the deferral of interest payments related to distributions of the exchangeable units, partly offset by lower operating income. Finally, the company generated $2.2 million in free cash flow during the second quarter, down from $3.6 million during the same quarter in 2025, due to lower operating income and higher capital expenditures during the quarter, some of which were one-time in nature. The transaction dollar value of homes traded in the Canadian residential real estate market closed at $96 billion for the second quarter of 2026, a 1.5% decline from 2025. This was driven by a 3% decrease in unit sales, offset by an increase in the average selling price of a home of 1.5% year-over-year. During the second quarter, the Greater Toronto Area real estate market expanded modestly, with transaction dollar volume increasing 1% year-over-year. This growth was driven by a 6% increase in unit sales, partly offset by a 5% decline in the average selling price. In contrast, the Greater Vancouver Area remained largely flat year-over-year. Average selling price increased by 1%, while unit sales increased by 1% compared to the same period last year. In the province of Quebec, dollar volumes in the residential real estate market decreased 2% in Q2 compared to the same period last year. This reflects a 6% decline in unit sales, despite an increase in the average selling price of 4% during the quarter, as activity continued to moderate. Spencer will now provide additional insight into the market and an update on our operations.
Thanks, Wallace. This year's spring housing market got off to a slower than usual start, with activity picking up toward the end of the second quarter. Persistent economic uncertainty and prolonged winter weather in several regions caused many buyers and sellers to delay their home buying or selling plans. Although home prices remained below year-ago levels, month-over-month trends in the quarter suggested the market is beginning to stabilize, particularly in Canada's largest and most expensive markets, where the recent slowdown has been most evident. In June, Canada's Consumer Price Index increased 2.8% year-over-year, down from the 3.2% recorded in May. This increase was driven largely by higher gasoline prices. Borrowing costs have remained stable, with the Bank of Canada maintaining its overnight lending rate at 2.25% in July. The next rate announcement is scheduled for September. While the Canadian economy continues to navigate global uncertainty, a resilient job market, steady consumer spending, and improved stability in the housing market are providing a solid foundation for steady housing market activity through the fall. Now I'd like to give you a few updates on the company's operations. During the second quarter, we continued to strengthen the visibility of our brands through targeted public relations, digital marketing, and media initiatives that elevated the profile of our agents. We also enhanced the consumer experience through continued investment in our digital platforms, AI capabilities, and professional development resources, providing our network with innovative tools to better serve clients and grow their businesses. A key milestone during the quarter was the launch of the new Royal LePage mobile app for iOS and Android. The app features listing summaries in 22 languages, immersive edge-to-edge property displays, and an integrated 24/7 AI assistant that provides real-time responses to consumer inquiries, improving engagement and creating more opportunities for lead conversion. We also introduced Canva Enterprise across the Royal LePage network, giving agents seamless MLS listing integration and access to a library of professional design, brand-compliant templates that make it easier to create and share high-quality marketing content. Our spring consumer advertising campaign further expanded brand awareness, generating more than 48 million consumer impressions and supporting lead generation across our network. Within the Proprio Direct network, we advanced several strategic technology initiatives, including the launch of a self-service content management system for the agent portals, and enhancements to digital marketing through a comprehensive SEO and AI search visibility audit, improving campaign measurement and lead attribution. In the second quarter, our Via Capitale brand orchestrated a province-wide digital awareness campaign to strengthen brand visibility across Quebec, generating more than 2.5 million impressions, reaching over 463,000 consumers, and driving nearly 10,000 visits to the company's website. These initiatives reflect our continued commitment to investing in industry-leading technology, digital marketing, and agent success. By strengthening our brands, enhancing the consumer experience, and equipping our network with innovative tools, we are building a stronger foundation for long-term growth. As we look ahead, we remain focused on executing our strategic priorities and creating long-term shareholder value. Through strategic capital allocation, continued investment in technology and innovation, and the strength of our brands, we believe Bridgemarq is well-positioned to capitalize on opportunities as market conditions improve and continue to stabilize. With that, I'll turn the call back to our operator and open up the call to questions.
[Operator Instructions] And your first phone question will be from Jeff Fenwick at Cormark.
Spencer. I wanted to start my questioning just around the movement in the broker count in your network. Maybe you could provide us a little bit of color about some of the dynamics there. Specifically, are we seeing industry contraction? Are we seeing maybe some of the agents being poached by other brands? Just any commentary about what's going on there. And I know you're on the flip side of it. You're, I'm sure, still focused on recruitment.
Yes, absolutely, Jeff, no problem. Well, really, on a year-to-date basis, we did see a decrease in our agent count, but that really was driven by the first quarter loss of a key franchise, as we talked about at our last investor call. Really, in the second quarter, agent count has been pretty stable. And, you know, while we do have a churn that is consistent with the rest of the industry, where a number of agents joining and a number of agents leaving, whether through retirements or other reasons, that's very typical of any period that we've ever had in the past. The overall count for the quarter is pretty stable. And the change on a net basis hasn't been material. We're not noting any significant gains or losses with respect to changes, movements to any specific competitor. I think it's very typical of what we might have seen in the past from recruiting. So I don't really have any highlights or changes there to comment on that are specific to any move into any individual competitor.
Okay, that's helpful. And, you know, just given the strategic change you're making here, the existing from the dividend or the majority of the dividend payment and being focused on growth. So I assume that's changing sort of your target mix of what you might look at. You might look at larger groups, maybe bringing in agents or franchise groups. Any comment there on the pipeline? Does it change your approach in the market there? Are you able to cast a wider net and how is that going with respect to enhancing those efforts?
Yes, sure. So, I mean, pipeline for the balance of the year is good and robust and quite healthy. The top of the funnel is quite strong. Most of it is individual franchises that are either operating independently or currently reaching the end of their contracts with competitors. That's, you know, very typical of what we've seen in the past. You know, what you might have seen in quarter by quarter, year by year in the past few years is what we see, but the pipeline is strong and the top of the funnel is very, very good. In the past history of this business, going back to original IPO over 20 years ago, we have from time to time made more strategic larger acquisitions. You know, for example, the Via Capitale brand, which at the time was La Capitale, we bought the entire network at that one time. While I don't necessarily have anything to comment on at the moment in terms of future that way, the change in our capital allocation policy gives us more flexibility to consider things like that moving forward. And so, you know, it gives us much more options than perhaps we saw leading up to the change in the capital allocation policy.
Okay. And maybe just, you know, commenting on the sort of the mood maybe across the agent group, the franchise group, you know, I guess, you know, one question that might come to mind, are they, you're obviously providing them with some tools and things to enhance their go-to-market, but are they coming back at you suggesting they want some relief on their fees? Is that something that's maybe a risk we should be mindful of here?
We haven't really seen that, Jeff. I'd say that for the most part, the realtor base that we have is a very strong, successful, far better than average market productivity team and network. And so they're having decent years given market conditions. And there isn't anything new or different in terms of their feedback to us. We engage with them on a continuous basis and have been forever to understand what makes sense for them, how that changes. And the items that we mentioned, that I mentioned on this call and that we've talked about in our MD&A, about adding functionality, adding ability to create content more seamlessly, more effort -- in a more efficient way, or even just CRM style tools. Those are the things that we get through direct feedback from them that they're looking for and they need and that they value. And so we're implementing those and have been. So, you know, it's a very healthy conversation. But no, we're not getting any pricing pressure and like that.
Okay, thank you, I appreciate that. And then maybe last one here, just on expenses. I mean, there's two perspectives. One is it's a tighter market, so you're going to be very careful on your spend. But the other side of it is you may also need to invest in some other areas to help prompt that future growth or support that future growth. So what's the -- maybe what's management's view on the expense base from here and how you're going to tackle?
Yes, Jeff, I think you hit the nail on it's head. I think it's going to be a balancing act for us. And as you can see in our numbers, expenses are coming down almost across the board. But at the same time, you know, what's not showing up in the, I guess, the highlight numbers is the fact that we are making a lot of investments, for example, in our bench strength. We've taken on quite a few very capable individuals adding to our team. So it's going to be a balancing act from this point on. We're not just only focused on expense control. But I don't know if Spencer wants to add anything to that.
Yes, we manage our expenses very tightly, looking to always operate as efficiently as possible. We've made some improvements in run rate OpEx on some of the more longer term fixed costs like premises. We always are taking advantage of opportunities to run with a streamlined and efficient workforce. Discretionary spending, we're still investing in our brands and we're still growing our businesses that way. But we take a very prudent approach to it, as usual.
At this time, we have no other phone questions.
Yes, thank you, Sylvie. So there are a few questions online related to the change in the capital allocation policy. So before I turn it over to Spencer to see if he has any additional comments on that, and including one specific question around whether you can give any examples of the acquisition or growth that we're looking at. So before I turn over to Spencer to answer that question, there are a few other questions that I'll answer first. The first question is: Can you explain what the increased capital expenditures were that we referenced in the financial discussion on the call? So part of the increase this quarter that we're seeing is related to, you know, one-time capital expenditures. You know, they're related to the company's head office move. So that's not going to repeat going forward. If you remove the impact of that, capital expenditures were pretty much in line with the prior quarters. There's another question on, do you anticipate paying deferred interest on exchangeable units with cash or stock? I would say that's a decision that we're going to take together with the board. So we'll discuss going forward and reach a decision. And when we do, we'll make the appropriate disclosure. At this point, it could be either or, or it could be a combination of both. And that agreement is not due until the end of October. There are no other questions, I'll turn it back to Spencer to just comment on the capital allocation policy change, and including if he can give any examples of the specific acquisition and growth opportunities that we're looking at.
Yes, sure, thanks, Wallace. So one of the things we wanted to do, knowing that shareholders would want to have, I think we have quite a bit of understanding of what we're planning on doing differently with our allocation policy. Within the press release that accompanied the change, we tried to set out as clearly as possible the guidelines and framework under which the board and management is making decisions on future capital expenditures. So I would refer everybody back to the content within that press release as to what we consider strategic investments, core important growth paths and opportunities. And that -- you know, that really is meant to be a document that shares that insight and we did that when we made the change and announced it. Moving forward, we will disclose obviously CapEx investments when we make them. For competitive and sensitive reasons, we don't disclose in advance, you know, actual decisions to make a CapEx investment is made at the board level when we actually make the commitment. So at this point, I don't have, you know, the ability to provide detail, future focus, lists of things that we're considering from a CapEx standpoint.
Okay, great. There are no more questions on the webcast.
Great. Thanks, Wallace. I'd like to thank everyone once again for joining us on today's call, and we look forward to speaking to you again after we release our third quarter results in November.
Ladies and gentlemen, this does indeed conclude your conference call for today. Once again, thank you for attending. And at this time, we do ask that you please disconnect your lines. Enjoy the rest of your day.
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