23rd Feb 2021 11:04
(Alliance News) - Scottish housebuilder Springfield Properties PLC on Tuesday reported a leap in profit for the first half of its financial year, attributed to a strong rebound in build and sales activity as operations resumed in late June 2020.
For the six months ended November 30, pretax profit rose 36% to GBP8.6 million from GBP6.3 million the year before, on revenue that grew 18% year-on-year to GBP94.4 million from GBP79.8 million, through growth in the company's Private Housing divisions.
Total house completions increased to 443 homes from 438 the year before, driven by an increase in completions from Private Housing due to a large amount of homes originally scheduled to be delivered at the of the prior financial year, but postponed due to the pandemic.
The average selling price of Springfield's private housing rose to GBP239,000 from GBP221,000 the year before, due to changes in the housing mix, however the land bank as at November 30 declined by 5.4% to 15,029 plots from 15,882 as at May 31.
Springfield Properties declared an interim dividend of 1.3 pence per share, compared to the 1.4p payout for the prior year that was withdrawn due to the pandemic's onset.
Looking ahead, the group said it expects its performance for the full financial year to be ahead of expectations, with increased sales in both private and affordable housing.
"This has been an excellent six months for Springfield. We safely and efficiently resumed construction to complete the homes that had been scheduled for handover at the end of the previous financial year. Our sales offices re-opened to significant interest, reflecting pent-up demand and the increasing desirability for the type of housing Springfield provides with spacious homes with private gardens and easy access to plenty of green space. As a result, we were able to deliver significant revenue growth and substantially reduce our net debt position, reflecting the operational gearing of the business," said Chief Executive Officer Innes Smith.
Shares in Springfield Properties were up 2.0% at 152.95 pence on Tuesday in London.
By Dayo Laniyan; [email protected]
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