Builders construct modular Space4 homes on a Persimmon development in Coventry, February 22, 2017. REUTERS/Darren Staples/File Photoon Thursday became the latest British housebuilder to flag affordability concerns from higher mortgage rates, but forecast annual profit in line with its expectations, sending its shares over 2% higher in early trade.
The FTSE 100 builder did not provide an outlook figure but the market is predicting a more than 65% slump in annual operating profit, according to a company-compiled median analysts' consensus estimate of 348 million pounds. The group's order book - a key metric that gauges short-term sales performance - declined 30% from a year ago to 1.6 billion pounds, compared with 2.2 billion pounds in 2022.
The proportion of sales to first-time buyers fell to 34% in the half-year period, compared with 42% year ago, the company said.Persimmon's underlying operating profit for the six months ended June 30 was 152.2 million pounds , down from 440.7 million pounds.