Vistry, a leading UK housebuilder, announced a revised homebuilding target for 2024, aiming to deliver over 18,000 units, surpassing its earlier projection of 17,500. This upward revision comes as the company experiences sustained demand for its affordable housing offerings, primarily from housing associations.
The news propelled Vistry's shares higher, with a 2% increase in early trading, building on its impressive year-to-date gains of 41%. While delays in UK interest rate cuts have tempered expectations of a swift recovery in the overall housing market, Vistry's strategic focus on the affordable housing segment has provided a competitive advantage.
Unlike some of its competitors, such as Taylor Wimpey and Persimmon, who have expressed caution regarding market conditions, Vistry CEO Greg Fitzgerald expressed confidence in the company's trajectory. He affirmed that Vistry is on track to build 10% more homes this year than in the previous year, with an accompanying increase in annual profit.
In March, Vistry had initially set a target of exceeding 17,500 homes, compared to the 16,118 delivered in the prior year. The company, deriving a significant portion of its sales from partnerships with local authorities, housing associations, and government providers, reported forward sales of £4.9 billion as of May 15th, marking a 10% year-on-year increase.
Vistry also noted strong interest from the private rented sector, while open-market sale prices have remained relatively stable. The company's total sales rate averaged 0.96 units so far this year, compared to 0.87 in the previous year, and has accelerated to 1.23 over the last eight weeks.
