Land regeneration and housebuilding group MJ Gleeson (GLE) delivered another strong performance, pushing operating profits up by 28 per cent in the year to June, and rewarded shareholders with a 45 per cent increase in the dividend payout.
Specialising in building affordable homes in the north of England is obviously paying off. Sales increased from 751 to 904 units, while average prices were kept low at £125,700, compared with £123,750 a year earlier. The emphasis here remains on affordability, and Gleeson has a number of schemes to help first-time buyers, such as 'save and build' and 'advance to buy'. And nearly two-thirds of all buyers took advantage of the government's Help to Buy scheme. A total of 18 new sites were opened, and more than 50 sites are expected to open in the current financial year.
Gleeson also has a strategic land arm through which it sells 'oven ready' plots to housebuilders in the south of England. Seven land sales were completed and operating profits grew by more than a quarter. Demand remains strong and Gleeson has 10 sites with planning consent, with a further 31 going through various stage of the planning process.
Analysts at N+1 Singer are forecasting adjusted pre-tax profits of £30.2m and EPS of 44.7p for the year to June 2017 (from £28.2m and 43.1p in 2016).
| MJ GLEESON (GLE) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ORD PRICE: | 600p | MARKET VALUE: | £325m | |
| TOUCH: | 600-611p | 12-MONTH HIGH: | 630p | LOW: 385p |
| DIVIDEND YIELD: | 2.4% | PE RATIO: | 14 | |
| NET ASSET VALUE: | 283p | NET CASH: | £23.2m | |
| Year to 30 Jun | Turnover (£m) | Pre-tax profit (£m) | Earnings per share (p) | Dividend per share (p) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | 41 | 3.0 | 5.5 | nil* |
| 2013 | 61 | 5.8 | 19.1 | 2.5 |
| 2014 | 81 | 12.2 | 33.4 | 6 |
| 2015 | 118 | 17.3 | 23.2 | 10 |
| 2016 | 142 | 28.2 | 43.2 | 14.5 |
| % change | +21 | +64 | +87 | +45 |
Ex-div: 17 Nov Payment: 15 Dec *Excludes special dividend of 5p a share | ||||
