Persimmon cautions amid stronger home buying – Daily Business

Persimmon has seen higher orders but the Iran war is an unknown factor (pic: Persimmon)

Persimmon said forward sales for this year are up 9% on the same period last year, though the war in Iran may have an impact on consumer sentiment.

Chief executive Dean Finch cautioned about the impact of the conflict amid concerns that interest rates will not be cut and may rise.

The company built 12% more homes (11,905) in the year to the end of December. Persimmon now anticipates delivering between 12,000 and 12,500 this year with forward sales in the first nine weeks rising to £1.25 billion.

The company said underlying operating profit this year is expected to be towards the upper end of consensus, though profit before tax is projected to be in line with expectations due to increased finance costs from growth investments.

Dean Finch, group chief executive, said the company had grown in a challenging market. 

“Sales in the opening weeks of the year have been strong and the build to rent market is recovering from the slowdown around November’s Budget,” he said.

“Whilst we have good visibility of both our costs for 2026 and our demand from registered providers and BTR, the impact of the Iran conflict on customer sentiment remains to be seen. Assuming the conflict with Iran and its impact is short, Persimmon is set to grow again in 2026.

“We are monitoring the impact the conflict with Iran could have on our markets in 2026, including on customer sentiment, build cost inflation and interest rates.

“Assuming the conflict and its impact is short, we expect to deliver between 12,000 and 12,500 completions in the year, with underlying operating profit towards the upper end of current consensus.”

Underlying profit before tax last year rose by 13% to £445.6 million. Revenue was 17% higher at £3.75bn, and underlying operating profit increased by 17% to £472.1m. The board has proposed maintaining the dividend at 60p per share.

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