Crest Nicholson Holdings plc Good year operationally, with an increased number of new homes delivered

Crest Nicholson Holdings plc (LON:CRST) today announced its final results for the year ended 31st October 2018.

Highlights

· Sales, including those from joint ventures, of £1,136.6m (2017: £1,065.6m) – up 7%

· Statutory revenue of £1,136.1m (2017: £1,043.2m) up 9%

· Volumes up 3% at 3,020 homes (2017: 2,935)

· Pre-tax profit down 15% to £176.4m (2017: £207.0m)

· Operating profit margin of 16.7% (2017: 20.3%)

· Net cash at year-end of £14.1m (2017: £33.2m)

· Gross development value of land pipelines up 3% to £12,083m (2017: £11,736m)

· Forward sales at mid-January of £639.4m (2017: £575.7m), 11% ahead of prior year

· Outlets increased 8% to 55 (2017: 51)

· Total dividend maintained at 33.0p, covered 1.7x by earnings (2017: 33.0p and 2.0x cover)

Commenting on today’s statement, Patrick Bergin, Crest Nicholson Chief Executive said: “The business has had a good year operationally, with an increase in the number of new homes delivered. However, we have faced some challenges in London and with sales at higher price points where political and economic uncertainty has adversely impacted customer demand and this is likely to continue pending Brexit resolution.

Our forward sales are strong, boosted by our strategic partnerships and our new channels to market. Pricing is stable, build cost inflation has moderated and we have implemented plans to mitigate margin pressure, which will take effect progressively over the next few years.

Our revised business strategy and focus on cash generation underpins our confidence in generating sustainable shareholder returns.”