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(Alliance News) - Taylor Wimpey PLC on Wednesday reported a fall in its interim profit and revenue, blaming "variable market conditions" for damaging the housing market.
Taylor Wimpey, a High Wycombe, England-based housebuilder, said pretax profit in its half year ended July 2 fell 29% to GBP237.7 million, from GBP334.5 million.
Revenue in the first half declined 21% to GBP1.64 billion, from GBP2.08 billion the prior year.
House completions decreased 26% to 5,120 homes, from 6,922 homes in the previous year, with the housing market hit by rising interest rates. Net private sales rate for the first half was 0.71 homes per outlet per week, down 21% from 0.90 year-on-year.
Taylor Wimpey opened 13 new outlets in the first half, down 74% from 50 the year before, which the company said reflected its "reduced land buying" due to complications in the planning system.
Chief Executive Jennie Daly said: "The first half of the year has been characterised by variable market conditions including substantially higher mortgage rates. While this has inevitably impacted our results, I am pleased that we have delivered a resilient performance with first half completions slightly ahead of our expectations."
Net cash increased by 1.9% to GBP654.9 million, from GBP642.4 million in the previous year.
Taylor Wimpey declared an interim dividend of 4.79 pence per share, up 3.4% from 4.62p the year before.
The company expects full year completions in the range of 10,000 to 10,500, down from 14,154 completions in the prior financial year. Full year operating profit is expected to range between GBP440 million and GBP470 million, a decrease from GBP923.4 million the year before.
"Taylor Wimpey is a strong, sustainable and agile business underpinned by a robust balance sheet and an excellent landbank. We remain well positioned to manage the business through near term challenges while maximising value in the medium to long term," said Chief Executive Daly.
Shares in Taylor Wimpey were up 3.4% at 118.00 pence in London on Wednesday morning.
By Will Neill, Alliance News reporter
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