Persimmon unveiled an impressive set of full-year results on Tuesday, underpinned by strong revenue growth and rising completions.
Despite a challenging economic backdrop, Persimmon reported a 12% increase in completions to 11,905 new homes and an underlying pre-tax profit of £445.6m, up 13%.
Persimmon shares were 8% higher at the time of writing.
New housing revenue jumped 16% to £3.31bn, helped by a 4% increase in the average selling price to £278,203. The underlying operating margin edged up 20 basis points to 14.3%, while return on average capital employed improved 60 basis points to 11.7%.
These results should come as a breath of fresh air to investors who have observed pretty poor results from other housebuilders.
Growth came across all three of the housebuilder’s brands, with the outlet count rising 3% to 277 at year’s end as the group progresses towards its target of at least 300 sites. Net private sales rates excluding bulk improved 4% to 0.59 per outlet per week, though total rates were held flat at 0.70 by slower bulk sales in the fourth quarter.
“In part, Persimmon’s resilient performance in the face of current market challenges has been helped by its houses being priced around 15% below the newbuild national average, offering a more accessible price point to buyers struggling with affordability issues,” explained Aarin Chiekrie, equity analyst, Hargreaves Lansdown.
Persimmon continued to invest heavily in land, spending a net £541m in the year, up from £437m, while its strategic land pipeline grew 10% to more than 77,000 potential plots.
Current trading has been encouraging, with the net private sales rate in the first nine weeks of 2026 up 9% to 0.73 per outlet per week. The private forward sales position has risen 9% to £1.25bn, with average selling prices in the order book up 6%.
Mark Crouch, market analyst at eToro, said: “The figures suggest demand in the new-build market is holding up better than many feared, particularly as mortgage costs remain relatively elevated.”
“Encouragingly, Persimmon also reported a stronger forward sales position of £1.25bn for private homes at the start of March, indicating a steady pipeline of activity heading into 2026.”
Chief executive Dean Finch was cautiously optimistic about the outlook, noting improved mortgage availability and real wage growth, but flagged uncertainty about the conflict with Iran and its potential impact on customer sentiment, and, most importantly, interest rates.
Assuming that conflict in the Middle East proves short-lived, Persimmon expects to deliver between 12,000 and 12,500 completions in 2026, with underlying operating profit towards the upper end of consensus.