MJ Gleeson delivers cautious outlook after 'challenging year'

(Sharecast News) - Shares in MJ Gleeson fell on Friday after the low-cost, affordable housebuilder delivered a cautious outlook and announced a "reorganisation" of Gleeson Homes, which included the exit of its divisional chief executive and organisational changes. The company, which said it expects pre-tax profits for the year to 30 June to be in line with market forecasts of £21m-22.5m, said the housing market "lacks confidence and remains subdued".

"The board does not see a short-term catalyst for any substantial improvement," MJ Gleeson said.

For the FY2026 financial year, pre-tax profit is expected to come in at or around £24.5m, towards the lower end of current market expectations.

Chief executive Graham Prothero said FY25 was a "challenging year for Gleeson".

"As well as external factors, it had become clear that our commercial delivery was not where we needed it to be. Over the last nine months we have therefore been implementing at pace management changes which will significantly benefit the business through FY2026 and beyond," he said.

Those changes included the resignation of Gleeson Homes chief executive Mark Knight with immediate effect, along with the restructure of its six regional operations into two divisions: Central (covering Greater Manchester & Merseyside, Cumbria, Midlands and South/West Yorkshire) and Northern (covering East Yorkshire and Tees Valley/Tyne & Wear).

The reorganisation is expected to result in a £1.2m cash cost in its FY2025 results, recognised as an exceptional item.

Separately, Gleeson also announced that its interim chair Fiona Goldsmith, who has been in the position since April, has now been appointed as its permanent chair.

The stock was down nearly 6% at 365.3p by 1109 BST.