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COSTAR GROUP INC

For the period ended Dec 31, 2023. Filed Feb 22, 2024.

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About this filing

A company's yearly report to the SEC, with audited financial statements. It is the fullest account a company gives of its business, its finances and the risks it sees.

FY2023 · Filed Feb 22, 2024

CSGP$31.24+2.3%Stored close · as of Nov 9, 2026

Extracted filing text, with the paragraph anchors used by the comparison.

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Glossary of Terms

The following abbreviations or acronyms used in this Annual Report on Form 10-K (this "Report") are defined below:

Abbreviation or AcronymDefinition
2020 Credit AgreementThe second amended and restated credit agreement, dated July 1, 2020, which amended and restated in its entirety the then-existing credit agreement originally entered into on April 1, 2014, as amended by the first amendment to the second amended and restated credit agreement, dated May 8, 2023.
ACHAutomated Clearing House
ADRAverage daily rate
Apartments.com NetworkApartments.com, the flagship brand of our network of apartment marketing sites, and its network of rental websites
ARSAuction rate securities
ASCAccounting Standards Codification
ASUAccounting Standards Update
Audit CommitteeThe Audit Committee of the Board
BizBuySellBizBuySell.com and its network of business for-sale websites
BoardThe CoStar Group Board of Directors
BureauxLocauxThe legal entity, Comreal Info, a French société par actions simplifiée, the owner and operator of BureauxLocaux, a commercial real estate digital marketplace, in France
BureauxLocaux AcquisitionCoStar UK's acquisition of BureauxLocaux completed on October 1, 2021 pursuant to a Share Sale and Purchase Agreement dated October 1, 2021 between CoStar UK, M.A.J.E. Marketing & Strategie and an individual
Business ImmoThe legal entity BIH, a French société par actions simplifiée, the owner and operator of Business Immo, a leading commercial real estate news service provider in France
Business Immo AcquisitionCoStar UK's acquisition of the issued share capital of Business Immo on April 5, 2022
CAN-SPAM ActControlling the Assault of Non-Solicited Pornography and Marketing Act
CCPACalifornia Consumer Privacy Act, as amended by the California Privacy Rights Act
CECLCurrent expected credit losses
CMBSCommercial mortgage-based securities
CODMChief Operating Decision Maker
Confidential InformationInformation about customers, employees, contractors, suppliers, vendors, and others such as landlords and tenants, including personal information such as names, addresses, phone numbers, email addresses, credit card information, biometric data, sensitive or confidential transaction and account information, social security numbers, birthdates and financial information (for example, to facilitate the apartment rental application and payment process between a renter and property manager), as well as a broad range of proprietary and confidential business information, collectively
CoStar GroupThe legal entity, CoStar Group, Inc., a Delaware corporation, one or more of its consolidated subsidiaries or operating segments, or the entirety of CoStar Group, Inc. and its consolidated subsidiaries
CoStar UKThe legal entity, CoStar UK Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary of CoStar Group
Covenant Suspension PeriodA period of time defined in the 2020 Credit Agreement in which we maintain a corporate investment grade rating from any two of Standard & Poor’s Rating Services, Fitch Ratings, Inc. or Moody’s Investors Services, Inc. and no event of default is continuing
CPAColorado Privacy Act
CPRAThe California Privacy Rights Act
Abbreviation or AcronymDefinition
CRICoStar Realty Information, Inc., a Delaware corporation and wholly owned subsidiary of CoStar Group, Inc.
DSUsDeferred Stock Units
E.U.European Union
EBITDANet income before interest income or expense, net; other income or expense, net; loss on debt extinguishment; income taxes; depreciation and amortization
ESGEnvironmental, Social and Governance
ESPPEmployee Stock Purchase Plan
EURIBOREuro Interbank Offered Rate
FASBFinancial Accounting Standards Board
FCRAFair Credit Reporting Act
FTCFederal Trade Commission
GAAPGenerally accepted accounting principles in the U.S.
GDPRGeneral Data Protection Regulation
GILTIGlobal intangible low taxed income inclusion
GPP PlanA U.K. Group Personal Pension Plan
Halo Merger SubSnapped Halo Merger Sub Corp., a Delaware corporation and wholly owned subsidiary of CoStar Realty Information, Inc.
Homes.comA homes-for-sale listings site
Homes GroupThe legal entity Homes Group, LLC
Homes.com AcquisitionCRI's acquisition of Homes.com completed on May 24, 2021 pursuant to a securities purchase agreement dated April 14, 2021 between Landmark, Homes Group, LLC and CRI
Homes.com NetworkHomes.com, the flagship brand of our North American network of online platforms that manage workflow and marketing for residential real estate agents and brokers and provide portals for homebuyers to view residential property listings
HomesnapHomesnap is an online and mobile software platform that provides residential real estate professionals access to applications that manage residential real estate agent workflow and marketing campaigns delivered on third-party platforms acquired in the Homesnap Acquisition
Homesnap, Inc.The legal entity Homesnap, Inc., a Delaware corporation
Homesnap AcquisitionCRI's acquisition of Homesnap completed on December 22, 2020, pursuant to an Agreement and Plan of Merger dated November 20, 2020 between CRI, Halo Merger Sub Corp and Homesnap, Inc. Halo Merger Sub Corp. was merged with and into Homesnap, Inc., with Homesnap, Inc. surviving the merger as a wholly-owned subsidiary of CRI
ILSInternet listings services
IT SystemsInformation technology networks, systems and infrastructure to process, transmit and store electronic information and to communicate among our locations around the world and with our clients and vendors, collectively
Land.com NetworkOur network of sites featuring rural lands for sale including: LandsofAmerica, LandAndFarm and LandWatch
LandmarkLandmark Media Enterprises, LLC
LIBORLondon Interbank Offered Rate
LoopNet NetworkOur network of online marketplaces, including LoopNet.co.uk, CityFeet.com and Showcase.com, enabling commercial property owners, landlords and real estate brokers working on their behalf to advertise properties for-sale or for-lease and to submit detailed information about property listings
Matching RSUsAwards of matching restricted stock units awarded under the Company's Management Stock Purchase Plan
MLSMultiple listing services
MSPPManagement Stock Purchase Plan
Abbreviation or AcronymDefinition
OnTheMarketThe legal entity OnTheMarket Plc, the operator of onthemarket.com, a leading U.K. residential property portal.
OnTheMarket AcquisitionCoStar UK's acquisition of OnTheMarket completed in December 2023, pursuant to Rule 2.7 of the United Kingdom City Code on Takeovers and Mergers. The acquisition has been implemented by means of a court-sanctioned scheme of arrangement under the U.K. Companies Act 2006
RentPathRentPath Holdings, Inc.
RevPARRevenue per available room
ROURight-of-use
RRSPA Canadian registered retirement savings plan
SECU.S. Securities and Exchange Commission
Securities ActSecurities Act of 1933, as amended
SEMSearch Engine Marketing
Senior Notes2.800% notes issued by CoStar Group, Inc. due July 15, 2030
SEOSearch Engine Optimization
SOFRSecured Overnight Financing Rate
SONIASterling Overnight Index Average
STAR ReportA benchmarking tool used by the hospitality industry to compare a hotel's performance against a set of similar hotels in the same geographical area
STRSTR, LLC together with STR Global Ltd is a global data and analytics company that specializes in benchmarking hotel performance and providing market insights to the industry
TCPATelephone Consumer Protection Act (as implemented by the Telemarketing Sales Rule)
Ten-XThe legal entity Ten-X Holding Company, Inc. and its directly and indirectly owned subsidiaries
Ten-X AcquisitionCRI's acquisition of Ten-X completed on June 24, 2020, pursuant to an Agreement and Plan of Merger dated May 13, 2020 between CRI, Crescendo Sub, Inc, and Ten-X
Term SOFRThe forward-looking SOFR term rates administered by CME Group Benchmark Administration Limited
TSRTotal shareholder return
U.K.The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
U.S.The United States of America
UCPAUtah Consumer Privacy Act
VCDPAVirginia Consumer Data Protection Act

Cautionary Statement Concerning Forward-Looking Statements

We have made forward-looking statements in this Report and make forward-looking statements in our other reports filed with the SEC, press releases and conference calls that are subject to risks and uncertainties. Forward-looking statements include information that is not purely historic fact and include, without limitation, statements concerning our financial outlook for the year ending December 31, 2024 and beyond, our possible or assumed future results of operations generally and other statements and information regarding assumptions or expectations about our revenues, revenue growth rates, gross margin percentage, net income, net income per share, fully diluted net income per share, EBITDA, adjusted EBITDA, adjusted EBITDA margin, non-GAAP net income, non-GAAP net income per diluted share, weighted-average outstanding shares, cash flow from operating activities, operating costs, capital and other expenditures, the impact of current economic conditions on our revenues, revenue growth rates and profitability, key priorities for the year ending December 31, 2024, trends in customer behavior, legal proceedings and claims, legal costs, effective tax rate, product development and release, the anticipated benefits of completed or proposed acquisitions, the anticipated timing of acquisition closings and integrations, the anticipated benefits of cross-selling efforts, geographic and product expansion, planned service enhancements, expansion and development of our sales forces, planned sales and marketing activities and investments, investments in residential marketplace services and our residential marketplace strategy, the impact or results of sales and marketing initiatives, product integrations, elimination and de-emphasizing of services, net new bookings, contract renewal rates, use of proceeds from equity and debt offerings, the use of proceeds from any draws under our $750 million credit facility provided by the 2020 Credit Agreement, expectations regarding our compliance with financial and restrictive covenants in the 2020 Credit Agreement, employee relations, management’s plans, goals and objectives for future operations, sources and adequacy of liquidity and growth and markets for our stock. Sections of this Report that contain forward-looking statements include “Business,” “Risk Factors,” “Properties,” “Legal Proceedings,” “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations,” “Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures About Market Risk,” “Controls and Procedures” and the Consolidated Financial Statements and related Notes.

Our forward-looking statements are also identified by words such as “hope,” “anticipate,” “may,” “believe,” “expect,” “intend,” “will,” “should,” “plan,” “estimate,” “predict,” “continue” and “potential” or the negative of these terms or other comparable terminology. You should understand that these forward-looking statements are estimates reflecting our judgment, beliefs and expectations, not guarantees of future performance. They are subject to a number of assumptions, risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied in the forward-looking statements. The following important factors, in addition to those discussed or referred to under the heading “Risk Factors,” and other unforeseen events or circumstances, could affect our future results and could cause those results or other outcomes to differ materially from those expressed or implied in our forward-looking statements:

our inability to attract and retain new clients;

our inability to successfully develop and introduce new or updated information, analytics and online marketplace services;

our inability to compete successfully against existing or future competitors in attracting advertisers and in general;

competition;

the effects of fluctuations and market cyclicality;

the effects of global economic uncertainties and downturns or a downturn or consolidation in the real estate industry;

our inability to hire qualified persons for, or retain and continue to develop, our sales force, or unproductivity of our sales force;

our inability to retain and attract highly capable management and operating personnel;

the downward pressure that our internal and external investments may place on our operating margins;

our inability in increasing brand awareness;

our inability to maintain or increase internet traffic to our marketplaces, and the risk that the methods, including Google Analytics, that we use to measure unique visitors to our portals may misstate the actual number of unique persons who visit our network of mobile applications and websites for a given month or may differ from the methods used by competitors;

our inability to attract new advertisers;

our inability to successfully identify, finance, integrate and/or manage costs related to acquisitions;

the effects of cyberattacks and security vulnerabilities, and technical problems or disruptions;

the risks related to a large infrastructure project to build out our campus in Richmond, Virginia;

our inability to generate increased revenues from our current or future geographic expansion plans;

the risks related to acceptance of credit cards and debit cards and facilitation of other customer payments;

the effects of climate change and other events beyond our control;

the effects related to increased attention to ESG matters;

our inability to obtain and maintain accurate, comprehensive or reliable data;

our ability to enforce or defend our ownership and use of intellectual property;

our inability to successfully halt the operation of websites that aggregate our data, data from other companies or “copycat” websites that may misappropriate our data;

our inability to defend against potential legal liability for collecting, displaying or distributing information;

our inability to obtain or retain listings from real estate brokers, agents, property owners and apartment property managers;

our ability to maintain or establish relationships with third-party listing providers;

our ability to comply with the rules and compliance requirements of MLSs;

the risks related to international operations;

the effects of foreign currency fluctuations;

the effects of Brexit;

our indebtedness;

the effects of a lowering or withdrawal of the ratings assigned to our debt securities by rating agencies;

the effects of any actual or perceived failure to comply with privacy or data protection laws, regulations or standards;

the effects of changes in tax laws, regulations or fiscal and tax policies;

the effects of third-party claims, litigation, regulatory proceedings or government investigations; and

risks related to return on investment.

Accordingly, you should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements, which speak only as of, and are based on information available to us on, the date of this Report. All subsequent written and oral forward-looking statements attributable to us or any person acting on our behalf are expressly qualified in their entirety by the cautionary statements contained or referred to in this section. We do not undertake any obligation to update any such statements or release publicly any revisions to these forward-looking statements to reflect new information or events or circumstances after the date of this Report or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events.

PART I

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The text of this filing, as the company filed it with the SEC, without its images or exhibits. This is not investment advice.