Bellway Shares Nudge Higher As FY Completions Top Estimates

Forbes

5 hours ago

Shares in Bellway edged higher on Tuesday after the housebuilder announced forecast-beating completions for last year.
At £24.72 per share, the company – which is the UK's fifth-largest home creator by volume – was last 1.4% higher.
The FTSE 250 builder said revenues rose 17% in the 12 months to July, to £2.76 billion. Housing completions increased 14.3% to 8,749 homes, while average selling prices improved to £316,000 from £307,909.
Both completions and asking prices came in slightly ahead of forecasts.
Bellway said that 'customer demand was supported by good availability of mortgage finance and relative stability in mortgage interest rates during the year and overall, headline pricing and the level of targeted incentives have remained stable across our regions.'
Weekly private reservations per outlet rose to 0.57 from 0.51. Excluding bulk sales, the rate crept up to 0.52 from 0.49 previously.
However, the builder noted that 'a solid period of demand through the spring was followed by softer trading in the final quarter.'
Bellway's operating margin rose by a percentage point over the year, to 11%. It said 'build cost inflation was in the low single digits throughout the year,' adding that 'there are presently good levels of building materials and subcontractor availability across the group.'
9,200 Completions Targeted
Improving private reservations over the year meant Bellway's forward order book comprised 5,307 homes as of 31 July.
This was up from 5,144 at the same point in 2024. Meanwhile, the value of its order book swelled to £1.5 billion from £1.4 billion in financial 2024.
Supported by land bank improvements, its outlet opening programme and that rising order book, Bellway said it expects completions to increase to 9,200 this year.
The company contracted to purchase 8,120 plots last year at a value of £567 million. This was up from 4,621 and £345 million respectively in the prior year.
Bellway finished financial 2025 with net cash of £42 million, swinging from net debt of £10.5 million. This was in line with expectations.
'Solid Performance'
Chief executive Jason Honeyman said 'Bellway has delivered a solid performance despite ongoing headwinds for our industry. There was good growth in volume output and an improvement in underlying margin which are set to drive a strong increase in profits for [the last financial year].'
He added that 'we have entered the new financial year with a healthy forward order book and outlet opening programme and, if market conditions remain stable, we are well-positioned to deliver further growth in [financial 2026].'
'Promising' Outlook
Analyst Dan Lane of Robinhood UK commented that 'Bellway has built on its June outlook, with completions and average selling prices slightly pipping expectations. The picture looks more promising too, with an improving operating margin, better cash position and strong dividend cover.'
He added that 'a healthy order book shows buyer confidence is clearly starting to seep back into the market and last week's rate cut won't do any harm there. Bellway needs this trend to pick up and, with a goal of producing 9,200 homes, if it does it should start to feel the benefit sooner rather than later.'