You should shop elsewhere March 9, 2010 LIBERTY didn’t suffer as much as rivals during the recession, which is why it isn’t bouncing back quite so energetically. Consensus forecast for net asset value (NAV) per share was between 480p and 500p, but those expectations were always too high. That said, even the bears were disappointed by the actual NAV per share of [...]
Persimmon is back in black as sales rise March 2, 2010 HOUSEBUILDER Persimmon swung back into profit last year after writing up the value of its landbank by almost £75m. Pre-tax profits came in at £77.8m compared to a £780m loss in 2008 when lower property valuations took their toll as the sector was ravaged by the recession. The UK’s largest housebuilder completed 8,976 homes last [...]
ANALYST VIEWS: HOW SIGNIFICANT IS PERSIMMON’S UPTURN? March 2, 2010 RACHAEL WARING | PANMURE GORDON “These figures are pretty good and helped by the fact that Persimmon is in a position where it can write up the value of its landbank. However, for the housebuilding market as a whole things don’t look so good, with uncertainty over the election and in the economy as a [...]
Persimmon back in profit March 2, 2010 HOUSEBUILDER Persimmon swung back into profit last year after writing up the value of its landbank by almost £75m. Pre-tax profits came in at £77.8m compared to a £780m loss in 2008 when lower property valuations took their toll as the sector was ravaged by the recession. The UK’s largest housebuilder completed 8976 homes last [...]
Housing sales boost bottom line at Barratt February 24, 2010 HOUSEBUILDER Barratt Developments saw its losses narrow in the second half of the year as the housing market showed further signs of finding its feet. Pre-tax losses came in at £178.4m compared to a loss of £594.5m a year earlier. However, it took a £129.9m hit from finance costs following its £720m placing and rights [...]
Housebuilders are still a risky bet February 24, 2010 DURING his election campaign, President Barack Obama told voters that America could “build itself out of recession”. That’s just what the housebuilders are hoping they can do. Barratt Developments was putting a brave face on it yesterday, as it reported higher operating margins and strong forward sales. Galliford Try and Kier Group were also cheery. [...]
Barratt in housing market boost February 24, 2010 HOUSEBUILDER Barratt Developments saw its losses narrow in the second half of the year as the housing market showed further signs of finding its feet. Pre-tax losses came in at £178.4m compared to a loss of £594.5m a year earlier. However, it took a £129.9m hit from finance costs following its £720m placing and rights [...]
THE TIPSTER TIME TO GO DEFENSIVE IN YOUR PORTFOLIO February 21, 2010 VOLATILITY has been rising since the start of this year and all of these extreme moves can make investors dizzy. Now is a good time to switch to a more defensive stance on equities and invest in the likes of supermarkets and energy providers. These companies tend to perform strongly when risk aversion returns to [...]
Home owners paying lowest mortgage interest in years January 14, 2010 BARRATT Developments, the housebuilder, yesterday said recent bad weather had led to a flurry of online enquiries as it reported stronger first-half trading, adding to hopes the worst is over for the sector. Chief executive Mark Clare said online enquiries more than doubled in recent weeks as a countrywide cold snap forced many people to [...]
Barratt in housing market boost January 14, 2010 HOUSEBUILDER Barratt Developments today fuelled hopes of recovery in the sector with rising volumes and prices bringing about an improvement in operating margins. The FTSE 250 group completed 5028 homes in the six months to 31 December and says it on track to hit its full-year targets of 12,000 completions. The average price of its [...]