CoStar Group 10-K 2022-12-31

UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

FORM 10-K

For the fiscal year ended December 31, 2022

OR

For the transition period from ______ to ______

Commission file number 0-24531

CoStar Group, Inc.

(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

(Address of principal executive offices) (zip code)

(202) 346-6500

(Registrant’s telephone number, including area code)

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:

Securities registered pursuant to section 12(g) of the Act: None

Indicate by check mark if the registrant is a well-known seasoned issuer, as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act.

Yes x No o

Indicate by check mark if the registrant is not required to file reports pursuant to Section 13 or Section 15(d) of the Act.

Yes o No x

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports) and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days.

Yes x No o

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically every Interactive Data File required to be submitted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T (§232.405 of this chapter) during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit such files).

Yes x No o

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, a smaller reporting company, or an emerging growth company. See the definitions of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer,” “smaller reporting company,” and "emerging growth company" in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.

If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act.

o

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has filed a report on and attestation to its management’s assessment of the effectiveness of its internal control over financial reporting under Section 404(b) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (15 U.S.C. 7262(b)) by the registered public accounting firm that prepared or issued its audit report.

x

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Act).

Yes ☐ No x

As of June 30, 2022, the aggregate market value of the common stock (based upon the closing price of the stock on the Nasdaq Global Select Market) of the registrant held by non-affiliates was approximately $23.7 billion. As of February 17, 2023, 406,772,431 shares of common stock were outstanding.

DOCUMENTS INCORPORATED BY REFERENCE

Portions of the registrant’s definitive proxy statement, which is expected to be filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission within 120 days after the end of the registrant’s fiscal year ended December 31, 2022 are incorporated by reference into Part III of this Report.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Glossary of Terms

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

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 2023 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, key priorities for 2023, trends in customer behavior, the current and future impacts of COVID-19 on global economic conditions, the real estate industry, or our customers, 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 sales, contract renewal rates, use of proceeds from equity and debt offerings, the use of proceeds of any draws under our $750 million credit facility provided in 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;

• 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 effects of and uncertainty surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic and its effect on the global economy and the real estate industry;

• 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;

• 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

In this Report, the words “we,” “our,” “us,” “CoStar Group” or the “Company” refer to CoStar Group, Inc. and its direct and indirect wholly owned subsidiaries. This Report also refers to our websites, but information contained on those sites is not part of this Report.

CoStar Group, founded in 1987, is a leading provider of online real estate marketplaces, information and analytics in the U.S. and U.K. based on the fact that we own and operate leading online marketplaces for commercial real estate and apartment listings in the U.S., based on the numbers of unique visitors and site visits per month; provide more information, analytics and marketing services than any of our competitors; offer the most comprehensive commercial real estate database available; and have the largest commercial real estate research department in the industry. We have created and compiled a standardized platform of information, analytics and online marketplace services where industry professionals and consumers of commercial real estate, including apartments, and the related business communities, can continuously interact and facilitate transactions by efficiently accessing and exchanging accurate and standardized real estate-related information. Our service offerings span all commercial property types, including office, retail, industrial, multifamily, commercial land, mixed-use and hospitality. With our acquisitions of Homesnap and Homes.com, we also offer online platforms that manage workflow and marketing for residential real estate agents and brokers and provide a portal for homebuyers to view residential property listings.

Industry Overview

The market for real estate information and analysis is vast, based on the variety, volume and value of transactions related to real estate. Each transaction has multiple participants and multiple information requirements, and in order to facilitate transactions, industry participants must have extensive, accurate and current information and analysis. Members of the real estate and related business community require daily access to current data such as space availability, properties for-sale, rental units available, rental rates, vacancy rates, tenant movements, comparable sales, supply, new construction, absorption rates and other important market developments to carry out their businesses effectively. Market research (including historical and forecast conditions) and applied analytics are instrumental to the success of industry participants. There is a strong need for an efficient marketplace, where real estate professionals can exchange information, evaluate opportunities using standardized data and interpretive analyses and interact with each other on a continuous basis.

A large number of parties involved in commercial and residential real estate and the related business community make use of the services we provide in order to obtain information they need to conduct their businesses, including:

The commercial real estate and related business community historically operated in an inefficient marketplace because of the fragmented approach to gathering and exchanging information within the marketplace. Various organizations, including hundreds of brokerage firms, directory publishers and local research companies, collected data on specific markets and developed software to analyze the information they independently gathered. This highly fragmented methodology resulted in duplication of efforts in the collection and analysis of information, excessive internal cost and the creation of non-standardized data containing varying degrees of accuracy and comprehensiveness, resulting in a formidable information gap.

The creation and maintenance of a standardized information platform for commercial real estate requires infrastructure including a standardized database, accurate and comprehensive research capabilities, experienced analysts, easy-to-use technology and intensive participant interaction. By combining our extensive database, researchers, our experienced team of analysts and economists, technological expertise and broad customer base, we believe that we have created such a platform.

The apartment rental advertising industry serves property managers and owners who are tasked with finding renters to occupy vacant apartments, as well as renters who are searching for their next home. Property managers have several options at their disposal, including their own websites, drive-by and outdoor advertising, traditional classified ads, free online listing services, search engine marketing and ILS, like Apartments.com and the network of apartment listing websites we own and operate. Many apartment ILS websites feature only the rental availabilities that larger property owners pay to advertise, resulting in a poor user experience in which the renter’s search criteria return either limited or no results, irrelevant results or stale results that do not represent actual availabilities.

We believe that consumers expect accurate, actionable and comprehensive apartment rental information. Our apartment ILS websites include renter-focused features like the ability to filter search results according to various criteria (e.g., commute time to work); professional images of the properties, including immersive videos and 3-D interactive models; custom neighborhood profiles; and tenant reviews. Our network of apartment listing websites draws on our multifamily database and includes researched and verified information. We proactively gather information on available rentals to improve the accuracy of the listings on our apartment ILS websites, including real time unit-level availability, current pricing and rent specials. We have continually invested in our network to improve the features and services offered to property managers and website users. Recent additions include: dynamic lead forms that provide more information about prospective residents, making rent trends information publicly available, free digital ad retargeting and integrated online rental solutions, including lease applications with tenant credit and background checks. We believe that we have created and maintain easily searchable apartment ILS websites with a comprehensive selection of rentals, information on actual rental availabilities and rents and in-depth data on neighborhoods, as well as easy to use and actionable tools for the rental process.

We believe that consumers expect accurate, actionable and comprehensive homes for sale information on a platform that allows collaboration between homebuyers and agents. Our residential websites include homebuyer-focused features like the ability to filter search results according to various criteria (e.g., home features, view and lot type), review rankings of nearby schools and tools to educate consumers on the home buying process. We plan to develop original, m

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Risks related to our business

Our revenues and financial position will be adversely affected if we are not able to attract and retain clients**.** Our success and revenues depend on attracting and retaining subscribers to our information, analytics and online marketplace services. Our subscription-based services generate the largest portion of our revenues. Our revenue may not grow, or could decrease, if we cannot attract new customers, continue to keep our cancellation rate low and continue to sell new services to our existing customers. We may not be able to continue to grow our customer base, keep the cancellation rate low or sell new services to existing customers as a result of several factors, including, continuing global economic and geopolitical volatility, economic pressures and the impact of inflation on our costs and on customer spending; the business failure of current clients; customer decisions that they do not need our services or to use alternative services; customers’ and potential customers’ budgetary constraints; consolidation in the real estate and/or financial services industries; data quality; technical problems; competitive pressures; or devaluation of the local currencies of international customers relative to the U.S. dollar which impairs the purchasing power of such customers. We compete against many other real estate information, analytics and marketing service providers for business. If clients cancel services or decide not to renew their subscription agreements and we do not sell new services to our existing clients or attract new clients, then our renewal rate, net new sales and revenues may decline or fail to meet expectations.

We may not be able to successfully develop and introduce new or upgraded information, analytics and online marketplace services that are attractive to our users and advertisers or successfully combine or shift focus from current services with less demand, which could decrease our revenues and our profitability. Our future business and financial success will depend on our ability to continue to anticipate the needs of customers and potential customers and to successfully introduce new and upgraded services, including services that make our marketplaces useful for users and attractive to advertisers. To be successful, we must be able to quickly adapt to changes in the industry, as well as rapid technological changes, by continually enhancing our information, analytics and online marketplace services. As a result, we must continually invest resources in research and development to improve the appeal and comprehensiveness of our services and effectively incorporate new technologies.

Developing new services and upgrades to services, as well as integrating and coordinating current services, imposes heavy burdens on our systems department, product development team, management and researchers. The processes are costly, and our efforts to develop, integrate and enhance our services may not be successful. In addition, launching and selling a new or upgraded service puts additional strain on our sales and marketing resources. If we are unsuccessful in obtaining greater market share or in obtaining widespread adoption of new or upgraded services, we may not be able to offset the expenses associated with the development, launch and marketing of the new or upgraded service, which could have a material adverse effect on our financial results. For example, to generate brand awareness and site traffic for our marketplaces, we have and will continue to invest significant resources in multi-channel marketing campaigns. If these marketing campaigns do not increase brand awareness, site traffic and/or revenues, the cost of these campaigns could have an adverse effect on our financial results.

In addition, as we integrate acquired businesses, we continue to assess which services we believe will best meet the needs of our customers. If we eliminate or phase out a service and are not able to offer and successfully market and sell an alternative service, our revenues may decrease, which could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations.

We may not be able to compete successfully against existing or future competitors in attracting advertisers, which could harm our business, results of operations and financial condition. We compete to attract advertisers. Our competitors may have greater brand recognition or more direct sales personnel than we have and may generate more web traffic than we do, which may provide them with competitive advantages. To compete successfully for advertisers, we must continue to invest resources in developing our advertising platform and proving the effectiveness and relevance of our advertising services. Pressure from competitors seeking to acquire a greater share of our advertisers’ overall marketing budget could adversely affect our pricing and margins, lower our revenue and increase our research and development and marketing expenses. If we are unable to compete successfully against our existing or future competitors, our business, results of operations or financial condition could be adversely affected.

Competition could render our services uncompetitive and reduce our profitability. The markets for information systems and services and for online marketplaces in general are highly competitive and rapidly changing. Competition in these markets may increase further if economic conditions or other circumstances cause customer bases and customer spending to decrease and service providers to compete for fewer customer resources. Our existing or future competitors may have greater name recognition, larger customer bases, better technology or data, lower prices, easier access to data, greater user traffic or greater financial, technical or marketing resources than we have to provide services that users might view as superior to our offerings. Competitors may introduce different solutions that attract users away from our services or provide solutions similar to ours that have the advantage of better branding or marketing resources. Our competitors may be able to undertake more effective

marketing campaigns, obtain more data, adopt more aggressive pricing policies, make more attractive offers to potential employees, subscribers, advertisers, distribution partners and content providers or may be able to respond more quickly to new or emerging technologies or changes in user requirements. Increased competition could result in lower revenues and higher expenses, which would reduce our profitability.

Our operating results and revenues are subject to fluctuations and our quarterly financial results may be subject to market cyclicality, each of which could negatively affect our stock price. The real estate market may be influenced by general economic conditions, economic cycles, changes in interest rates, seasonality and many other factors, which in turn may impact our financial results. The different sectors of the large and fragmented industry, such as office, industrial, retail, multifamily, single family and others, are influenced differently by different factors, and have historically moved through economic cycles with different timing. As such, it is difficult to estimate the potential impact of economic cycles and conditions or seasonality from year-to-year on our overall operating results. We generally see higher sales of Apartments.com listing services during the peak summer rental season and higher CoStar sales towards the end of the year; however, sales fluctuate from year-to-year and may fluctuate more widely when there are changes in general economic conditions or the industry, such as changes resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic and due to other macroeconomic factors. In addition, we generally incur greater marketing expenses during the second quarter, which coincides with the peak season for apartment rentals. The timing of widely observed holidays and

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None.

Our headquarters is located at 1331 L Street, NW, in downtown Washington, DC, where we occupy approximately 169,093 square feet of office space, with a lease that expires on May 31, 2025 (with two five-year renewal options). Our headquarters is used primarily by our North America operating segment. Our principal facility in the U.K. is located in London, where we occupy 23,064 square feet of office space. Our lease for this facility has a term ending August 31, 2025. This facility is used by our International operating segment.

Our staff in Richmond, Virginia occupy an owned building located at 501 S 5th Street, where we occupy 276,695 square feet and lease out 33,912 square feet to another tenant through March of 2023; an owned building located at 901 Semmes Avenue, where we own and occupy 117,448 square feet; and leased space at 951 E Byrd St where we occupy 97,171 square feet. These locations house research, product development and sales functions. All of our owned properties are held under fee simple ownership and are not materially encumbered.

We also operate certain of our research, development and sales functions out of additional leased office spaces in Irvine, California; San Diego, California; and Atlanta, Georgia. Additionally, we lease office space in a variety of other metropolitan areas. These locations include, among others, the following: Hendersonville, Tennessee; Norfolk, Virginia; Boston, Massachusetts; New York, New York; San Francisco, California; and Los Angeles, California.

We believe these facilities are suitable and appropriately support our business needs.

Currently, and from time to time, we are involved in litigation incidental to the conduct of our business, including, among others, the legal actions discussed under “Contingencies” in Note 13 “Commitments and Contingencies” of the Notes to our Consolidated Financial Statements. While our management presently believes that the ultimate outcome of these proceedings, individually and in the aggregate, will not materially harm our business, financial position, future results of operations or liquidity, legal proceedings are inherently uncertain, and unfavorable rulings could, individually or in the aggregate, have a material adverse effect on our business, financial position, future results of operations or liquidity.

Not Applicable.

PART II

Our common stock is traded on the Nasdaq Global Select Market under the symbol “CSGP.” As of January 31, 2023, there were 1,731 holders of record of our common stock.

Dividend Policy. We have never declared or paid any dividends on our common stock. We do not anticipate paying any dividends on our common stock during the foreseeable future, but intend to retain any earnings for future growth of our business.

Recent Issues of Unregistered Securities. We did not issue any unregistered securities during the year ended December 31, 2022.

Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities. The following table is a summary of our repurchases of common stock for the quarter ended December 31, 2022:

ISSUER PURCHASES OF EQUITY SECURITIES

(1) The number of shares purchased consists of shares of common stock tendered by employees to the Company to satisfy the employees' minimum tax withholding obligations arising as a result of vesting of restricted stock grants under the Company’s 2016 Stock Incentive Plan, as amended, which shares were purchased by the Company based on their fair market value on the trading day immediately preceding the vesting date. None of these share purchases were part of a publicly announced program to purchase common stock of the Company.

Stock Price Performance Graph

The stock performance graph below shows how an initial investment of $100 in our common stock would have compared to:

• An equal investment in the S&P 500 Index; and

• An equal investment in the S&P 500 Internet Services & Infrastructure Index.

The comparison covers the period beginning December 31, 2017 and ending on December 31, 2022, and assumes the reinvestment of any dividends. Note that this performance is historical and is not necessarily indicative of future price performance.

The following Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations contains “forward-looking statements,” including statements about our beliefs and expectations. There are many risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those discussed in the forward-looking statements. Potential factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those discussed in any forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, those stated above in under the heading “Cautionary Statement Concerning Forward-Looking Statements” and in Item 1A. under the heading “Risk Factors,” as well as those described from time to time in our filings with the SEC.

All forward-looking statements are based on information available to us on the date of this filing and we assume no obligation to update such statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. The following discussion should be read in conjunction with our Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, Current Reports on Form 8-K and other filings with the SEC and the consolidated financial statements and related notes included in this Report.

Overview

Our principal information, analytics and online marketplace services are described in the following paragraphs by type of service:

CoStar

CoStar is our subscription-based integrated platform for commercial real estate intelligence, which includes information about office, industrial, retail, multifamily, hospitality and student housing properties, properties for sale, comparable sales, tenants, space available for lease, industry professionals and their business relationships, industry news and market status and provides lease analytical, risk management, and hospitality benchmarking capabilities. CoStar's year-over-year revenue growth rate for 2022 accelerated compared to 2021. The number of subscribers has increased year-over-year and we have also realized the impact of price increases and existing customers upgrading to our global service offering. We expect CoStar's revenue growth rate for 2023 to slow compared to the revenue growth rate for 2022 as a result of less benefit from customer upgrades as the global product upgrade campaign is substantially complete and lower inflation-based price adjustments.

Information services

We provide real estate and lease management technology solutions, including lease administration, lease accounting and abstraction services, through our CoStar Real Estate Manager service offerings, as well as portfolio and debt analysis, management and reporting capabilities through our CoStar Risk Analytics service offerings. We also provide benchmarking and analytics for the hospitality industry both on a subscription basis and an ad hoc basis. We earn revenue on ad hoc transactions as reports or data are delivered to customers. We provide information services internationally, through our Business Immo, Belbex and Thomas Daily businesses in France, Spain and Germany, respectively. Information Services' year-over-year revenue growth rate for 2022 accelerated compared to 2021 as a result of increased revenue from CoStar Real Estate Manager services and the results of the Business Immo acquisition. We expect Information Services' revenue growth rate for 2023 to slow compared to the revenue growth rate for 2022 as a result of lower price adjustments.

Multifamily

Apartments.com is the flagship brand of our apartment marketing network of subscription-based advertising services and provides property management companies and landlords with a comprehensive advertising destination for their available rental units and offers renters a platform for searching for available rentals. This network also earns transaction-based revenue primarily from providing online tenant applications, including background and credit checks, and rental payment processing. Multifamily's year-over-year revenue growth rate for 2022 slowed compared to 2021 due to customers selecting lower-priced ad packages in the second half of 2021 while rental vacancy rates declined relative to historical averages reducing demand for top-level packages. Quarterly sales of multifamily products increased over 2022 due to new properties being added to the network and the impact of a new pricing strategy implemented to align prices at each product level with the value of the leads delivered. We expect Multifamily's year-over-year revenue growth rate for 2023 to accelerate compared to the revenue growth rate for 2022 due to expected increases in sales levels from bringing additional properties on the network.

LoopNet

Our LoopNet network of commercial real estate websites offer subscription-based, online marketplace services that enable commercial property owners, landlords and real estate agents working on their behalf to advertise properties for sale or for lease and to submit detailed information about property listings. Commercial real estate agents, buyers and tenants use the LoopNet network of online marketplace services to search for available property listings that meet their criteria. LoopNet's revenue growth rates slowed in 2022 when compared to 2021 as growth in the average price per listing declined in 2022 when compared to 2021. We expect LoopNet's year-over-year revenue growth rate for 2023 to accelerate compared to the revenue growth rate for 2022 due to expected increases in sales levels from increasing the number of listings in the network.

Residential

The acquisitions of Homes.com and Homesnap enabled us to expand our offerings to the residential for sale market. Homes.com is a homes for sale listings site. Homesnap 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. Homesnap also receives transaction-based revenue for short-term advertising delivered on third-party platforms. Residential revenue was consistent between 2022 and 2021. We expect residential revenue for 2023 to decrease when compared to 2022 due to the discontinuation of certain non-strategic products and services.

Other Marketplaces

Our other marketplaces include Ten-X, an online auction platform for commercial real estate that was acquired on June 24, 2020. Also included is our BizBuySell network, which includes BizQuest® and FindaFranchise and our Land.com Network of sites. The BizBuySell network provides online marketplaces for businesses and franchises for sale and our Land.com Network provides online marketplaces for rural lands for sale. Overall, other marketplaces' revenue growth rate slowed in 2022 compared to 2021 primarily due to the impact of the Ten-X acquisition closing in June 2020.We expect other marketplaces revenue growth rate for 2023 to slow compared to the growth rate for 2022 due to lower Ten-X transaction revenue.

Subscription-based Services

The majority of our revenue is generated from service offerings that are distributed to our clients under subscription-based agreements that typically renew automatically and have a term of at least one year. We recognize subscription revenues on a straight-line basis over the life of the contract.

For the years ended December 31, 2022, 2021 and 2020, our annualized net new bookings of subscription-based services on all contracts were approximately $305 million, $217 million and $184 million, respectively, calculated based on the annualized amount of change in our sales resulting from all new subscription-based contracts or upgrades on all existing subscription-based contracts, less write-downs and cancellations, for the period reported. Net new bookings is considered a key indicator of future subscription revenue growth and is also used as a metric of sales force productivity by us and investors. However, information regarding net new bookings is not

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We provide information, analytics and online marketplace services to commercial real estate and related business communities within the regions where we operate which primarily include, North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific and Latin America. The functional currency for a majority of our operations is the local currency, with the exception of certain international locations for which the functional currency is the British Pound.

Fluctuations in the British Pound, Canadian dollar and Euro may have an impact on our business, results of operations and financial position. For the years ended December 31, 2022 and December 31, 2021, revenues denominated in foreign currencies were approximately 4% and 4%, respectively, of total revenue. For the years ended December 31, 2022 and December 31, 2021, our revenues would have decreased by approximately $8 million and $7 million, respectively, if the U.S. dollar exchange rate used strengthened by 10%. For the years ended December 31, 2022 and December 31, 2021, our revenues would have increased by approximately $8 million and $7 million, respectively, if the U.S. dollar exchange rate used weakened by 10%. Fluctuations in the exchange rates of revenues denominated in any other foreign currencies would have had an immaterial impact on our consolidated results. In addition, we have assets and liabilities denominated in foreign currencies. We currently do not use financial instruments to hedge our exposure to exchange rate fluctuations with respect to our foreign subsidiaries. We may seek to enter into hedging transactions in the future to reduce our exposure to exchange rate fluctuations, but we may be unable to enter into hedging transactions successfully, on acceptable terms or at all. As of December 31, 2022, accumulated other comprehensive loss included a loss from foreign currency translation adjustments of approximately $29.1 million.

We do not believe we have material exposure to market risks associated with changes in interest rates related to cash equivalent securities held as of December 31, 2022. As of December 31, 2022, we had $5.0 billion of cash and cash equivalents. If there is an increase or decrease in interest rates, there will be a corresponding increase or decrease in the amount of interest earned on our cash and cash equivalents. We currently diversify our cash and cash equivalents holdings amongst multiple financial institutions.

We are subject to interest rate market risk in connection with our revolving credit facility. On July 1, 2020, we entered into the 2020 Credit Agreement, which provides for variable rate borrowings of up to $750 million. On July 1, 2020, we issued $1.0 billion aggregate principal amount of Senior Notes. Changes in interest rates would not have a material impact to our current interest and debt financing expense, as all of our borrowings except for our credit facility are fixed rate, and no amounts were outstanding under our credit facility as of December 31, 2022. See Note 11 of the Notes to the Consolidated Financial Statements included in this Report for additional information regarding our 2020 Credit Agreement.

We had approximately $2.6 billion of goodwill and intangible assets as of December 31, 2022. As of December 31, 2022, we believe our intangible assets will be recoverable; however, changes in the economy, the business in which we operate and our own relative performance could change the assumptions used to evaluate intangible asset recoverability. In the event that we determine that an asset has been impaired, we would recognize an impairment charge equal to the amount by which the carrying amount of the assets exceeds the fair value of the asset. We continue to monitor these assumptions and their effect on the estimated recoverability of our intangible assets.

Financial Statements meeting the requirements of Regulation S-X, including reports of independent registered public accounting firm Ernst & Young LLP, are set forth beginning at page F-1. Supplementary data is set forth in “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” under the caption “Consolidated Results of Operations.”

None.

We maintain disclosure controls and procedures that are designed to ensure that information required to be disclosed in our reports filed or submitted under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 is recorded, processed, summarized and reported, within the time periods specified in the SEC’s rules and forms, and that such information is accumulated and communicated to our management, including our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer, as appropriate, to allow for timely decisions regarding required disclosure. In designing and evaluating the disclosure controls and procedures, management recognized that any controls and procedures, no matter how well designed and operated, can provide only reasonable assurance of achieving the desired control objectives, and management is required to apply its judgment in evaluating the cost-benefit relationship of possible controls and procedures.

As of December 31, 2022, we carried out an evaluation, under the supervision and with the participation of our management, including our Chief Executive Officer and our Chief Financial Officer, of the effectiveness of the design and operation of our disclosure controls and procedures as of the end of the fiscal year. Based on the foregoing, our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer concluded that our disclosure controls and procedures were effective as of December 31, 2022 and were operating at a reasonable assurance level.

We continue to implement a financial system that is designed to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of our operational and financial accounting processes. This implementation is expected to be a multi-year project. Consistent with any process change that we implement, the design of the internal controls has and will continue to be evaluated for effectiveness as part of our overall assessment of the effectiveness of our disclosure controls and procedures. We expect that the implementation of this system will improve our internal control over financial reporting.

Other than the implementation of a new financial system noted above, there have been no changes in our internal control over financial reporting during the quarter ended December 31, 2022 that have materially affected, or are reasonably likely to materially affect, our internal control over financial reporting.

Management’s Report on Internal Control over Financial Reporting

Management of CoStar Group is responsible for establishing and maintaining adequate internal control over financial reporting and for the assessment of the effectiveness of internal control over financial reporting. As defined by the SEC, internal control over financial reporting is a process designed by, or supervised by, the Company’s principal executive and principal financial officers, to provide reasonable assurance regarding the reliability of financial reporting and the preparation of financial statements in accordance with GAAP.

The Company’s internal control over financial reporting is supported by written policies and procedures, that (1) pertain to the maintenance of records that, in reasonable detail, accurately and fairly reflect the transactions and dispositions of the Company’s assets; (2) provide reasonable assurance that transactions are recorded as necessary to permit preparation of financial statements in accordance with GAAP, and that receipts and expenditures of the Company are being made only in accordance with authorizations of the Company’s management and directors; and (3) provide reasonable assurance regarding prevention or timely detection of unauthorized acquisition, use or disposition of the Company’s assets that could have a material effect on the financial statements.

Because of its inherent limitations, internal control over financial reporting may not prevent or detect misstatements. Projections of any evaluation of effectiveness to future periods are subject to the risk that controls may become inadequate because of changes in conditions, or that the degree of compliance with the policies or procedures may deteriorate.

In connection with the preparation of the Company's annual financial statements, management of the Company has undertaken an assessment of the effectiveness of the Company’s internal control over financial reporting as of December 31, 2022 based on criteria established in Internal Control – Integrated Framework (2013 framework) issued by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission. Management's assessment included an evaluation of the design of the Company's internal control over financial reporting and testing of the operational effectiveness of the Company's internal control over financial reporting.

Based on this assessment, management has concluded that the Company's internal control over financial reporting was effective as of December 31, 2022.

Ernst & Young LLP, the independent registered public accounting firm that audited the Company's financial statements included in this report, has issued an attestation report on the effectiveness of internal control over financial reporting, a copy of which is included in this Report.

None.

Not applicable.

PART III

CoStar Group has adopted a Code of Conduct for its directors. In addition, CoStar Group has adopted a separate Code of Business Conduct and Ethics for its officers and employees, including its principal executive, financial and accounting officers, or persons performing similar functions. Copies of each of these codes may be found in the “Investors” section of the Company’s website at https://investors.costargroup.com/leadership. We intend to disclose future amendments to certain provisions of our Codes, or waivers of such provisions granted to executive officers and directors, as required by the SEC rules on the Company's website within four business days following the date of such amendment or waiver.

The remaining information required by this Item is incorporated by reference to our Proxy Statement for our 2023 annual meeting of stockholders under the captions “Nominees for the Board of Directors,” “Nominees’ Business Experience, Qualifications and Directorships,” “Executive Officers,” “Board Meetings and Committees,” and, if applicable, “Delinquent Section 16(a) Reports.”

The information required by this Item is incorporated by reference to our Proxy Statement for our 2023 annual meeting of stockholders under the captions “Compensation Discussion and Analysis,” “Executive Compensation Tables and Discussion,” “Narratives to Summary Compensation Table and Grants of Plan-Based Awards Table,” “Director Compensation,” “Compensation Committee Interlocks and Insider Participation,” and “Compensation Committee Report.”

The information required by this Item is incorporated by reference to our Proxy Statement for our 2023 annual meeting of stockholders under the captions “Equity Compensation Plan Information” and “Stock Ownership Information.”

The information required by this Item is incorporated by reference to our Proxy Statement for our 2023 annual meeting of stockholders under the captions “Certain Relationships and Related Transactions” and “Corporate Governance Matters.”

The information required by this Item is incorporated by reference to our Proxy Statement for our 2023 annual meeting of stockholders under the caption “Ratification of the Appointment of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm.”

PART IV

(a)(1) The following financial statements are filed as a part of this Report: CoStar Group, Inc. Consolidated Financial Statements.

(a)(2) Financial statement schedules: Additional financial statement schedules are omitted because they are not applicable or not required or because the required information is incorporated herein by reference or included in the financial statements or related notes included elsewhere in this report.

(a)(3) The documents required to be filed as exhibits to this Report under Item 601 of Regulation S-K are listed as follows:

Exhibits

• Management Contract or Compensatory Plan or Arrangement.

None.

SIGNATURES

Pursuant to the requirements of Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized.

KNOW ALL PERSONS BY THESE PRESENTS, that each individual whose signature appears below constitutes and appoints Andrew C. Florance and Scott T. Wheeler, and each of them individually, as their true and lawful attorneys-in-fact and agents, with full power of substitution, for him and in his name, place and stead, in any and all capacities, to sign any and all amendments to this report, and to file the same, with all exhibits thereto and to all documents in connection therewith, with the Securities and Exchange Commission, granting unto said attorneys-in-fact and agents, and each of them, full power and authority to do and perform each and every act and thing requisite and necessary to be done in connection therewith, as fully to all intents and purposes as he might or could do in person, herein by ratifying and confirming all that said attorneys-in-fact and agents or any of them, or his or their substitute or substitutes, may lawfully do or cause to be done by virtue hereof.

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1934, as amended, this report has been signed by the following persons on behalf of the registrant and in the capacities and on the dates indicated.

COSTAR GROUP, INC.

INDEX TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

F-1

Report of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm

The Board of Directors and Stockholders of CoStar Group, Inc.

Opinion on the Financial Statements

We have audited the accompanying consolidated balance sheets of CoStar Group, Inc. (the Company) as of December 31, 2022 and 2021, the related consolidated statements of operations, comprehensive income, changes in stockholders’ equity, and cash flows for each of the three years in the period ended December 31, 2022 and the related notes (collectively referred to as the “consolidated financial statements”). In our opinion, the consolidated financial statements present fairly, in all material respects, the financial position of the Company at December 31, 2022 and 2021, and the results of its operations and its cash flows for each of the three years in the period ended December 31, 2022, in conformity with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles.

We also have audited, in accordance with the standards of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (United States) (PCAOB), the Company's internal control over financial reporting as of December 31, 2022, based on criteria established in Internal Control-Integrated Framework issued by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (2013 framework), and our report dated February 22, 2023 expressed an unqualified opinion thereon.

Basis for Opinion

These financial statements are the responsibility of the Company's management. Our responsibility is to express an opinion on the Company’s financial statements based on our audits. We are a public accounting firm registered with the PCAOB and are required to be independent with respect to the Company in accordance with the U.S. federal securities laws and the applicable rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission and the PCAOB.

We conducted our audits in accordance with the standards of the PCAOB. Those standards require that we plan and perform the audit to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial statements are free of material misstatement, whether due to error or fraud. Our audits included performing procedures to assess the risks of material misstatement of the financial statements, whether due to error or fraud, and performing procedures that respond to those risks. Such procedures included examining, on a test basis, evidence regarding the amounts and disclosures in the financial statements. Our audits also included evaluating the accounting principles used and significant estimates made by management, as well as evaluating the overall presentation of the financial statements. We believe that our audits provide a reasonable basis for our o

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