The_Guardian_-_2016-12-29

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Bovis Homes
Bovis profit warning takes investors by
surprise
Announcement of slow build production sends shares down 4.7%, with other housebuilders suffering
smaller falls
A Bovis site in Trumpington, Cambridge. The government has set a target of building 1m homes by
2020. Photograph: Chris Radburn/PA
Julia Kollewe
Wednesday 28 December 2016 12.02 GMT Last modified on Thursday 29 December 2016
00.05 GMT
Bovis Homes, one of Britain’s biggest housebuilders, has issued a profit warning, sending shivers
through the sector.
Bovis said it would complete about 180 fewer homes than expected this year, blaming operational
issues. It expects between 3,950 and 4,000 completions, rather than the 4,170 forecast by the City, a
fall that will affect profits.
Bovis now expects pre-tax profit for 2016 of £160m-£170m, compared with analysts’ forecasts of
about £183m. Revenues are expected to total £1.04-£1.06bn.
“We have experienced slower-than-expected build production across the group’s sites during
December, resulting in approximately 180 largely built and sold private homes that were expected to
complete in 2016 being deferred into early 2017,” it said.
The unscheduled stock market announcement, which followed a prediction of record annual revenues
in November, took investors by surprise. Shares in Bovis dropped by 5.3% to 811p, making it the
biggest faller on the FTSE 250. Other housebuilders were also hit, including Persimmon, Barratt,
Crest Nicholson and Berkeley Group.