Henry Boot (BOOT) H2 2025 earnings summary

Executive summary

• Achieved total land and property sales of £356 million (share: £193 million), with strong demand for prime residential land despite a subdued housing market.

• Improved planning environment post-NPPF changes enabled a near tripling of planning applications to 11,000 plots and secured planning for key projects like Golden Valley.

• Completed the first tranche of the Stonebridge acquisition (now majority owned) and sold Henry Boot Construction for £4 million, simplifying group structure and focusing on core activities.

• Delivered performance in line with market expectations, with Hallam exceeding budget by 13% and selling a record 3,957 plots.

• Focused on high-quality land, prime property development, and premium homes, maintaining a strong balance sheet.

Financial highlights

• Revenue decreased by 6% to £307 million due to lower new home sales, partially offset by higher strategic land disposals.

• Operating profit down 3% to £33.1 million; underlying profit £27.5 million (excluding valuation movements).

• Earnings per share up 1% to 17.6p; dividend increased by 2% to 7.86p per share.

• Net debt rose to £108 million, with gearing at 26%, above the 10%-20% target range.

• Investment property (including JV share) increased to £119 million after £15 million of profitable sales.

Outlook and guidance

• Confident in delivering FY26 expectations despite increased macroeconomic uncertainty.

• Hallam expected to have another strong year, though profit per plot will be lower due to a higher mix of promotion agreements.

• HBD to increase committed developments to around £150 million (share), with profits flowing into next year and beyond.

• Stonebridge Homes expected to recover in 2026, targeting 200-220 completions and a return to small profit.

• Performance expected to be H2 weighted; medium-term growth and return targets to be refreshed in 2026.