TIDMCSP
RNS Number : 6543D
Countryside Properties PLC
11 October 2018
11 October 2018
Countryside Properties PLC FY2018 Trading Statement
"Continued strong growth from mixed tenure delivery"
Countryside Properties PLC (the "Group"), a leading UK home
builder and urban regeneration partner, is today issuing a trading
update for the year from 1 October 2017 to 30 September 2018. The
Group will report its full year results on Wednesday 21 November
2018.
Operational Highlights
-- Total completions up 27% to 4,295 homes (2017: 3,389 homes)
-- Open sales outlets up 28% at 60 (2017: 47 outlets) with a
further 55 sites under construction (2017: 41 sites)
-- Net reservation rate(1) 0.80, at top of target range (2017: 0.84)
-- Private average selling price ("ASP") reduced by 7% to
GBP402,000 due to the impact of regional mix with underlying sales
price growth of 2%
-- Total forward order book up 40% at GBP900m (2017: GBP644m) of
which the private forward book was GBP215m (2017: GBP242m)
-- Strong cash generation with closing net cash of GBP45m, after
the acquisition of Westleigh (2017: GBP77m)
(1) Net reservations per open outlet per week
Partnerships
Our Partnerships division has delivered another year of strong
growth with total completions up 38% at 3,019 homes versus 2,192
homes in 2017. This includes 465 homes delivered by Westleigh,
acquired by the Group in April 2018. The private ASP in our
Partnerships division decreased by 7% to GBP318,000, driven by the
change in regional mix.
Private completions were up 38% to 1,137 homes, Private Rental
Sector ("PRS") units were up 12% at 809 and affordable homes were
up 66% to 1,073 in the period.
The scale of opportunity for our Partnerships division continues
to expand and we had another very successful year in winning new
business, underpinning growth and giving us excellent visibility
for the future. In addition to those sites already in the land
bank, including those with preferred bidder status, we secured
9,646 new plots in the year, more than three times the number of
plots used during the year.
We now have 29,878 Partnerships plots under our control (2017:
19,223 plots), including 4,981 plots from the acquisition of
Westleigh. This represents approximately ten years of future work
at current volumes for our Partnerships division.
Housebuilding
Our Housebuilding division has also continued to deliver good
growth with total completions up 7% at 1,276 homes (2017: 1,197
homes). The Housebuilding division continues to grow to scale and
is utilising our industry-leading strategic land bank to deliver
improving returns. Private ASP remained broadly flat at GBP512,000
during the year, in line with our strategy of ensuring that housing
remains relatively affordable for local owner-occupiers.
We have maintained our strategic land bank in the Housebuilding
division by acquiring 1,334 plots on ten sites during the period.
The Housebuilding land bank now stands at 19,778 plots (2017:
19,826 plots) of which 85% has been sourced strategically, on
options or conditional contracts.
Outlook
Our strategy of delivering a mix of tenures is both fuelling our
growth and providing resilience. We anticipate that private for
sale housing will only make up around one third of Group
completions in the coming year. We continue to have excellent
visibility of our medium-term growth with ten years' secured work
for Partnerships and our strategically-sourced land bank in
Housebuilding.
We continue to see strong demand for our homes, particularly
from first time buyers and the private rental sector but are seeing
a more subdued tone from discretionary purchasers. However, we
reiterate the medium-term guidance given at our Capital Markets Day
in June of 10% to 15% growth per annum. We will update on current
trading alongside our full year results announcement on 21 November
2018.
Ian Sutcliffe, Group Chief Executive, commented:
"We have enjoyed another year of strong growth, underpinned by
our strategy of mixed tenure delivery. Both our Partnerships and
Housebuilding divisions have performed very well on all financial
measures, exceeding all of the medium-term targets we set out ahead
of our IPO three years ago."
- Ends -
There will be a conference call for analysts and investors held
today at 0800hrs (BST):
Standard dial in: +44 (0) 20 7192 8338
Dial in UK Free Call: 0800 279 6619
Dial in UK Local Call: 0844 481 9752
Conference ID: 2258609
Enquiries:
Countryside Properties - 01277 260 000
Ian Sutcliffe - Group Chief Executive
Rebecca Worthington - Group Chief Operating Officer
Mike Scott - Group Chief Financial Officer
Brunswick Group LLP - 020 7404 5959
Nina Coad
Oliver Sherwood
About Countryside
Countryside is a leading UK home builder specialising in place
making and urban regeneration. Our business is centred around two
complementary divisions, Partnerships and Housebuilding. Our
Partnerships division specialises in urban regeneration of public
sector land, delivering private and affordable homes by partnering
with local authorities and housing associations. The Housebuilding
division, operating under Countryside and Millgate brands, develops
sites that provide private and affordable housing, on land owned or
controlled by the Group. Countryside was founded in 1958. It
operates in locations across outer London, the South East, the
North West of England and the Midlands.
For further information, visit
www.countryside-properties.com.
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END
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