Bellway’s profit has fallen by 18% amid “challenging market conditions”.
The housebuilder’s preliminary results for the year showed a 2.3% fall in completions to 10,945 and a 3.7% fall in revenue to £3.4bn.
Underlying pretax profit was down 18.1% to £532.6m as margin dropped to 16% from 18.5% the previous year.
However, settling the bulk of its building safety expenses, which were down from £346m last year to just under £50m this year, meant that its statutory pretax profit was actually up 59% to £483m.
Chief executive Jason Honeyman said: “Bellway has delivered a resilient performance against a backdrop of rising mortgage interest rates and challenging market conditions. Looking ahead, our operational strength and experienced teams will enable the group to successfully navigate a changing market.”
He added: “Notwithstanding the near-term market challenges, Bellway remains very well-placed to capitalise on future growth opportunities.”
However, the housebuilder said it expects to complete a third fewer homes this financial year as demand remains low.
The group told investors to expect a “material reduction in volume”, with 7,500 completions expected for 2024. That is about 8% below expectations and a 31% drop from the 10,945 completed in the last financial year.
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