Bellway has delivered surprisingly strong full-year results for the period ending 31 July 2025, with total housing completions rising 14.3% to 8,749 homes at an average selling price of £316,412.
The company’s underlying operating profit increased 27.5% to £303.5m, achieving an operating margin of 10.9%, up from 10.0% in the prior year.
Underlying profit before taxation grew 27.9% to £289.1m.
Bellway shares rose by more than 5% after the housebuilder released results that will please investors concerned about the state of the UK property market. They are also materially better than some of their peers have released recently.
Encouragingly, private reservation rates improved to 0.57 per outlet per week, representing an 11.8% increase year-on-year, though momentum softened in the final quarter following solid spring demand.
The company’s sales performance showed marked improvement in the second half, with the private reservation rate reaching 0.62 compared to 0.51 in the first half.
Setting the group up for the eventual pick up in the housing market, Bellway maintained a decent land bank totaling 95,704 plots at year-end, marginally up from 95,292 plots in 2024.
Perhaps the biggest positive for investors is Bellway’s decision to reward shareholders with a share buyback.
“Bellway’s new capital allocation policy had been well flagged by management, but investors are warming to it all the same, as the housebuilder both increases its annual dividend and launches a £150 million share buyback scheme for the coming year,” says AJ Bell investment director Russ Mould.
“A strong balance sheet supports this largesse, whereby the buyback and forecast dividends for the year to July 2026 equate to nearly 8% of the company’s stock market capitalisation, and increased profits would help, too.”
Analysts see the share buyback as a potential foundation for the share price to recover, despite the company, like all housebuilders, noting stuttering activity in recent months.
“While Bellway has seen a slow start to the year, its share buyback and improved cashflow point towards underlying strength in the business and a confidence in the months to come. The shares managed to find a short-term low in September, and these results seem to provide the groundwork for a further recovery in the price.”