(qlmbusinessnews.com via telegraph.co.uk – – Tue, 21 Aug 2018) London, Uk – –
Housebuilder Persimmon sought to reassure investors worried about a slowdown in the housing market after posting a rise in profits and selling more than 250 extra homes in the first half of the year.
Jeff Fairburn, chief executive, said the FTSE 100 company had “continued to experience good levels of customer interest” even during the typically quiet summer period as low unemployment and a “competitive mortgage market” helped spur demand.
Pre-tax profits rose 13pc to £516m in the six months to June after Persimmon sold 8,072 houses, 4pc more than in the same period last year. Revenues grew 5pc to £1.8bn.
The housebuilder has benefitted from the Government’s Help to Buy scheme, which offers first-time buyers financial support to buy new-build homes. It has also been helped by a relatively low exposure to the London market, which has seen a slowdown in recent months.
Persimmon’s bottom line was also bolstered by a 1pc increase in sales prices to £215,000 and tighter control of costs, which helped stretch its gross margin from 28.9pc to 30.8pc.
The company was embroiled in a fierce row with investors and politicians earlier in the year after it emerged Mr Fairburn was in line for as much as £100m because of a non-capped bonus scheme linked to its share price.
The debacle cost the jobs of Persimmon’s former chairman Nicholas Wrigley and the head of its remuneration committee Jonathan Davie. Mr Fairburn and other senior bosses who benefited from the scheme eventually agreed to hand back £50m.
By Jack Torrance
