Zillow Group (NASDAQ:ZG) shares rose about 4% after a U.S. federal judge declined to grant Compass Inc. a temporary injunction aimed at halting a Zillow policy governing how listings are posted. The decision allows Zillow to continue enforcing its rule that listings must be entered on a local multiple-listing service (MLS) within 24 hours of being publicly marketed on other channels.
U.S. District Judge Jeannette Vargas denied Compass's request for a preliminary stay of the policy. The denial means Zillow can maintain its listing restrictions while Compass's antitrust lawsuit, which the brokerage filed in June, moves through the judicial process.
The ruling is a notable setback for Compass, which has pursued a private listings network and has encouraged sellers to initially market properties with Compass agents before making listings visible on public platforms such as Zillow. In its complaint, Compass contends that Zillow's listing requirements amount to "anticompetitive tactics."
Zillow operates the most widely used home-search website in the United States, a position that gives its platform policies substantial influence over how brokerages and agents choose to market properties. Investors responded to the favorable court outcome for Zillow with a rise in the company’s stock price.
The court’s action preserves the status quo on Zillow’s site enforcement for now, but the broader legal dispute will continue to unfold through the antitrust case Compass lodged in June. Until the lawsuit reaches a resolution or the court issues a different ruling, Zillow remains able to apply the 24-hour MLS posting requirement to listings publicly marketed elsewhere.
Context limitations - This report reflects the court decision and immediate market reaction as described. It does not address any developments in the underlying antitrust claim beyond the existence of Compass’s June filing.