Bellway (BWY) delivered stellar results for the year to July 2014, with strong demand for homes across the UK boosting operating profits by more than two-thirds. The housebuilder, which cited an improvement in the supply of mortgage finance led by the government's Help to Buy scheme, rewarded shareholders with a 73 per cent hike in the dividend payout after posting a 21 per cent increase in the number of homes sold.
The group also benefited from a 10 per cent increase in the average selling price to £213,000, and from the opening of two new divisions in Manchester and the Thames Valley in August last year. Predictably, the buoyant London market provided a boost, but Bellway was also successful in the regions, noting demand for family housing in the north-east in particular.