Housebuilder Bellway made a pre-tax profit of £19m according to its reported half-year results, compared with a loss of £48m in the same period in the previous year
The UK’s fifth largest housebuilder by market value also increased its turnover 13%, jumping from £320m to £360m for the six months to 31 January 2010. The results also revealed that the Newcastle-based firm sold 2,247 homes during the period – an increase of 233 on 2008. It maintained an operating margin of 6.1%.
Howard Dawe, chairman, said: “Although the market stabilised during the latter part of 2009, concerns still exist regarding unemployment, mortgage availability and the outcome of the imminent general election.
“However, with the backing of a strong balance sheet and a positive cash position of about £72m, Bellway will be concentrating in the coming months on land acquisition and selectively increasing work in progress, with an emphasis on the southern divisions, where the market recovery appears more advanced.”
Charlie Campbell, analyst at Liberum Capital, said: “Bellway has declared a dividend of 3.3p, up 10% on last year, which is not big, but we take the increase as a sign of confidence.”
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