13th Mar 2026 09:02
(Alliance News) - Berkeley Group Holdings PLC on Friday said it continues to perform well as financial 2026 ends, and is "working hard" to overcome challenges from the uncertain macroeconomic environment.
Reflecting on the four months ended February 28, Berkeley reaffirmed its pretax profit forecast of GBP450 million for the year ending April 30. It expects "a similar level" for financial 2027, and also reiterated its target of an approximate GBP300 million net cash position.
"This reflects the settlement of over GBP250 million of land creditors, shareholder returns of around GBP190 million in the year to date and investment into Berkeley Living's BTR platform," the Surrey, England-based housebuilder explained.
Berkeley said its trading environment "has remained constrained" as geopolitical events and macro uncertainty have dampened consumer confidence, but that sales enquiries remain good and underlying reservation values have been recovering.
It also said it has returned GBP59 million via share buybacks since its interim results, bringing the year-to-date total to GBP191 million. It is "ahead of programme" with returns totalling GBP330 million since the launch of its 'Berkeley 2035' strategy in late 2024.
However, Berkeley said it was aware of the risk that the Middle East conflict could cause conditions to deteriorate further, with the potential for increased inflation and "higher for longer" interest rates, as the situation "is weighing heavily on risk sentiment".
Still, the company said it is "working hard to counter the challenges" it is facing, and is reviewing its planning consents to enhance and restore margins to levels which would enable moving into production.
It added that beyond 2027, it plans to focus on cash generation to maintain shareholder returns, the quality of its core business's profit and a strong balance sheet.
"In the long term, the outlook for London is positive," Berkeley stated. "It is a global city of tremendous resilience, ingenuity and creative power...the biggest financial centre in Europe, the second largest in the world and the leading global city for tech HQs over the last five years. It offers security, heritage and innovation in a great time zone and language.
"For customers with liquidity, the current market dislocation presents a good opportunity to buy."
Berkeley shares were down 2.7% at 3,656.00 pence in London on Friday.
By Emma Curzon, Alliance News reporter
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