Housebuilder posts strong half-year results, partly thanks to sale of share in Imperial College London scheme

Housebuilder Berkeley has pulled further ahead of its competitors after posting strong half-year results for the six months ending 31 October 2011.

The group鈥檚 pre-tax profit was up more than two thirds to 拢101m over the period, and turnover increased 20% to 拢405m.

锘縒hat they鈥檙e unrolling now is their order book from 18 months, two years ago

Kevin Cammack, Cenkos

Commenting in the group鈥檚 interim statement, managing director Rob Perrins said he was confident that Berkeley 鈥渞emains well placed to deliver its target to double its earnings, when compared with the financial year ended 30 April 2010, by 30 April 2013.鈥�

The group鈥檚 earnings in the first half of 2011 benefited from the sale of Berkeley鈥檚 51% share in a post-graduate accommodation scheme for Imperial College London, which created an exceptional profit of 拢30.7m. Berkeley also surprised analysts by unveiling Olympic Delivery Agency chair John Armitt as the group鈥檚 new deputy chair, and the results and management comments caused analysts to upgrade earnings forecasts.

Cenkos analyst Kevin Cammack said the firm had reaped the benefits of consistent foreign investment. 鈥淲hat they鈥檙e unrolling now is their forward sales and order book from 18 months, two years ago,鈥� he said. 鈥淭hey鈥檙e doing the higher rise stuff, and 40% is being sold to overseas investments. I think it鈥檚 circa half of their profit [from house sales] that are bought for cash.鈥�   

Robin Hardy, housing sector analyst at broker Peel Hunt, said the firm鈥檚 long-term focus and land bank - presently 26,404 plots - were the keys to its success. 鈥淭he danger is that one writes off what the company has achieved by saying it鈥檚 all to do with the fact that it鈥檚 in London. That simply isn鈥檛 the case,鈥� he said.

鈥淚t鈥檚 about how long it takes to do things. It thinks nothing of buying a site and not getting any sales from that site for many years because it鈥檚 worked hard during that period to get a far better planning consent or likely outcome. Wherever that company was operating, with the kind of operating structure it has, it would do very well.鈥�

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