Cairn increases share buyback to €60m

Irish housebuilder Cairn Homes has increased its share buyback programme to €60m (£51m). It has extended its €25m programme as part of a fundraise to generate €500m in cash by the end of 2022. The housebuilder is expected to report and increase in profit of 28% to €68m off the back of strong demand for starter homes and PRS bulk buys. In a trading update for the year ended 31 December, it reported revenue had increased by 29% to €434m. It sold 1,080 homes last year, an increase of 34.5% on the previous year. A further 740 homes have been forward sold with a sales value of €227.2m. Cairn said that around 600 of these, totalling €185m, will close in 2020. It said: “Our increasing forward order book reflects our broadening buyer pool and our more diverse product mix.” Co-founder and chief executive Michael Stanley said: “With more certainty around Brexit, the robust performance of the Irish economy and the fact that housing supply still falls significantly short of demand, we believe our business model is well positioned to take full advantage and we look forward with real confidence to 2020 and beyond.” Cairn Homes will announce its full results on 3 March 2020. To send feedback, e-mail emma.rosser@egi.co.uk or tweet @EmmaARosser or @estatesgazette