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* McGrath says "unprecedented low volumes" persisting
* Expects H2 results will be weaker than H1
* Shares drop 17 pct (Adds analyst forecast, shares)
SYDNEY, Jan 23 (Reuters) - McGrath Ltd MEA.AX , Australia's only public residential realtor, said on Monday it expects earnings in the current financial year to be below analyst forecasts due to a drop in home sale listings and an unusually high number of agents leaving.
Its shares sank as much as 17 percent to a record low after the warning.
The company said in a statement that "unprecedented low volumes of listings" had not improved since it last warned of the problem in November 2016, and that it lost 36 sales agents from its offices segment.
The company added that it was recruiting new agents but "the usual time for an agent to become fully productive means these new agents will not match the volumes required to maintain our previously expected second-half earnings".
Analysts had forecast McGrath would report a net profit of A$11.6 million ($9 million) for the year to June 30, 2017, down from A$14.6 million in 2016, its first result as a listed company, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.
The company, which says it has 225 agents in its company owned segment, has not itself issued a forecast for 2017.
On Monday, it said early indications suggested earnings were in line with analyst expectations for the first half, "however we believe the second half results will be weaker than the first half, which would make those full year analyst estimates look high".
McGrath shares sank as low as A$0.71 in early trading on Monday, while the broader market was up 0.2 percent. Since listing in December 2015, the stock has never traded above its A$2.10 issue price.
The company reports earnings for the six months to Dec. 31, 2016, on Feb. 23. ($1 = 1.3233 Australian dollars)