Crest Nicholson sees FY at lower end, but upbeat on 2025

House builder Crest Nicholson said it expected full-year earnings to be at the lower end of the guidance due to a higher proportion of affordable homes being delivered and moved to trade out of low margin sites.

The company forecast adjusted pre-tax profits of £22m - £29m.

“Encouragingly, the broader economic landscape is becoming more favourable, with a more benign interest rate environment and increased government support to improve the planning process to deliver their ambition of increasing supply of much needed homes in the UK,” chief executive Martyn Clark said in a trading statement for the year to October 31.

The company now expects to deliver 1,873 units and an open market sales rate of 0.48, down from 0.52 a year ago, with the sales rate for the last 10 weeks of the financial year at 0.53.

“Full year 2025 will be a year of transition for Crest Nicholson. We are well-positioned with sufficient land with full planning permission to support our planned outlets and volumes. We will focus more on private sales and prioritise value over volume to enhance returns and margins,” Clark said.

Reporting by Frank Prenesti for Sharecast.com