McStone delivers “solid results in difficult market”

McCarthy & Stone has announced its financial results for the 14 month period ended October 31 2019. The results, says the firm, are “in line with expectations against the backdrop of a challenging market and strategic structural changes”.

In the 14 month period completions reached 2,301 (2,134 in the previous 12 months), revenue £725 million (£671.6 million) and profit before tax of £43.4 million (£58.1 million) with around £17 million of exceptional costs incurred during the period, mainly representing the cost of land which will no longer be developed net of any residual land value to be recovered, redundancy costs and consultants' fees in relation to the firm’s strategic review.

Average selling price rose to £308,000 from £300,000.

Ceo John Tonkiss, said: "The group's new strategy has driven a solid FY19 trading performance in a difficult market. We have a strong balance sheet, a continued focus on delivery of operational improvements across our business and an ongoing commitment to delivering high quality developments and five star customer satisfaction.

"We are also making excellent progress across our key strategic initiatives as set out in September 2018, particularly rental, where our initial pilots have confirmed strong demand for renting in …