21st Aug 2018 08:11
LONDON (Alliance News) - FTSE 100-listed housebuilder Persimmon PLC said Tuesday it has continued to deliver on its long-term strategy as it recorded a rise in first half profit and revenue.
For the six months to the end of June, pretax profit totaled GBP516.5 million, up 13% from GBP457.4 million the year before, as revenue grew 5% to GBP1.84 billion from GBP1.75 billion.
Shares in the company were trading 1.2% higher at 2,474.0 pence on Tuesday morning, the best performer in FTSE100 Index.
Persimmon said it sold 8,402 homes during the period, up from 7,794 the prior year, with the average selling price of those homes standing at GBP215,813, up 1.2% from GBP213,262.
The group said it secured 11,072 plots of new land during the period, bringing its consented land bank to 101,445 plots, and added that its current forward sales position is at GBP2.12 billion, 6.0% ahead of the year before.
Persimmon returned 118.2 pence per share in the first half as part of an ongoing capital return programme, down from 126.5 pence per share distributed in the same period a year ago.
The group said that current trading is in line with expectations, as the average weekly private sales rate per site for the year to date is 0.76. For the six months period, this was at 0.78, in line with the year before.
"Conditions in the group's regional housing markets continue to be supportive, with resilient consumer confidence benefiting from strong employment levels, low interest rates, and a competitive mortgage market. We expect to experience the normal seasonal increase in customer interest as the summer holiday season draws to a close in early September," said Chairman Roger Devlin.
"Persimmon's performance over the first six months of 2018 has been robust. The financial strength of the group, resulting from the successful execution of the group's strategy over recent years, places Persimmon in a strong position to adapt to changes in market conditions and to take advantage of opportunities as events unfold," Devlin added.
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