Persimmon and Gleeson Homes make progress

Persimmon and Gleeson Homes have issued upbeat trading statements today (January 14), with the former expecting its 2024 underlying pre-tax profit to be around the upper end of market expectations.

For its year ending December 31 2024, Persimmon expects profit to be in the range of £349 million to £390 million. It anticipates its underlying operating margin to be similar to last year as previously advised. In 2023, Persimmon's underlying operating margin was 14%,

As previously reported, the volume housebuilder’s 2024 completions improved on the previous year – up 7% to 10,664 homes. It said private completions, increasing 18% to 9,075 homes, had driven the uplift.

The private average selling price of its homes lifted slightly from 2023’s £285,774 to around £287,150.

During the year, Persimmon’s net private sales per outlet per week rose 21% to 0.70, “with demand consistently higher than the prior year since the spring”.

It opened around 100 new outlets in 2024, thanks, it said, to its strategic investment in land and planning in recent years. It ended the year with 270 open outlets, a 5% increase from the beginning of the year.

Persimmon’s forward sales position as of December 31 2024 …