Profit rise at Persimmon

Profit before tax at UK housebuilder Persimmon increased 29% to £352.3 million (€409.8 million) from a figure of £272.8 million (€317.3 million) in the same period a year earlier.

The company reported revenue up 12% to £1.49 billion (€1.73 billion) from a 2015 figure of £1.33 billion (€1.55 billion).

Jeff Fairburn, group CEO, said, “Persimmon’s robust trading performance in the first half of 2016 was driven by our continued focus on meeting market demand to deliver controlled sustainable growth. The group’s strong cash generation has supported further disciplined land investment embedding value for the future.”

He said that while the result of the UK’s EU referendum had created increased economic uncertainty, customer interest since then had been robust with visitor numbers to its sites around 20% ahead year-on-year.

Private sale reservation rate since 1 July is currently 17% ahead of the same period last year, said Fairburn. He added that the group was now trading through the traditionally slower summer weeks, although customer demand was said to remain encouraging, and the company expected a good autumn sales season.

“We are confident that our long-term strategic focus will continue to deliver strong returns for our shareholders,” said Fairburn.