Bellway housing revenue tops £1.25bn in first half

(Sharecast News) - Bellway said in a trading update on Friday that its half-year housing revenue topped £1.25bn, consistent with its projections. The FTSE 250 housebuilder said that despite a decrease in total housing completions to 4,092 homes, the average selling price held firm at £309,300.

It said it had strategically maintained headline pricing while leveraging targeted sales incentives to attract customers and secure reservations, navigating challenges posed by build cost inflation, which moderated during the period.

A notable surge in private reservations, with a 15.4% increase to 105 per week, underscored growing customer interest, further buoyed by a reduction in mortgage interest rates.

The company said it was capitalising on that momentum, opening 34 new outlets during the period and planning over 40 additional outlets in the latter half of the financial year.

Despite a decrease in the forward order book, attributed to a higher expected weighting of housing completions in the first half of the fiscal year, Bellway remains optimistic about volume recovery.

Its net cash position fell to £77m from £292.5m, but its said it had a low adjusted gearing, including land creations, of 5%.

"Bellway has delivered another resilient performance in a period of challenging trading conditions," said group chief executive officer Jason Honeyman.

"While the economic backdrop remains uncertain, the gradual reduction in mortgage interest rates through the first half has eased affordability constraints and we are encouraged by the seasonal pick-up in customer leads and an improvement in reservations since the start of the new calendar year.

"We have maintained balance sheet resilience and, supported by the strength of our land bank, Bellway remains well-placed to capitalise on future growth opportunities and will continue to play an important role in increasing housing supply in the years ahead."

At 0816 GMT, shares in Bellway were flat at 2,180p.

Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com.