UK's Bellway FY revenue slightly beats estimates; announces buyback

Overview

• UK homebuilder's full-year revenue rose 13.6%, slightly beating analyst expectations

• Underlying pre-tax profit for the year increased 5.7%

• Company announced £150 mln FY27 share buyback, raising total returns to c.£450 mln

Outlook

• Bellway targets FY27 housing completions between 9,000 and 9,400, down from 9,695 in FY26

• Company expects FY27 average selling price to be similar to FY26 at around £325,000

• Underlying operating margin is expected to reduce further in FY27 due to margin pressures

Result Drivers

• VOLUME GROWTH - Higher housing completions, including increased bulk sales, contributed to revenue and profit growth

• SALES INCENTIVES - Increased use of targeted incentives to support affordability amid subdued demand, leading to moderation in selling prices

• COST CONTROL - Management actions underway to strengthen cost control and operational efficiency, including procurement savings and standardisation

Company press release:

Key Details

*Applies to a deviation of less than 1%; not applicable for per-share numbers.

Analyst Coverage

• The current average analyst rating on the shares is "buy" and the breakdown of recommendations is 11 "strong buy" or "buy", 5 "hold" and 1 "sell" or "strong sell"

• The average consensus recommendation for the homebuilding peer group is "buy"

• Wall Street's median 12-month price target for Bellway PLC is GBp2,380.00, about 19.9% above its October 12 closing price of GBp1,985.00

• The stock recently traded at 12 times the next 12-month earnings vs. a P/E of 11 three months ago

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(This story was created using Reuters automation and AI based on LSEG and company data. It was checked and edited by a Reuters journalist prior to publication.)