Henry Boot confident of record profits after strong start to year

Henry Boot is expecting to hit profit targets after making a strong start to the year. Analysts have forecast a £47.8m profit before tax, which would put it above last year’s £35m profit, which was itself double the previous year. Chief executive Tim Roberts said the “very busy and successful start to the year” had been fuelled by “robust demand” across its three key markets: industrial and logistics, residential and urban development. The developer said land sales had continued to support the business, with its Hallam Land Management arm selling 3,477 plots. Total plot sales will be higher this year due to the disposal of 2,170 plots at Didcot to national housebuilders Taylor Wimpey and Persimmon Homes. HLM has replenished its land bank and despite achieving high sales, the number of plots has remained stable at 92,569 plots. HLM is on track to deliver against its strategic objective of an average of 3,500 plots sales per annum over the medium term. The development arm, HBD is now 73% prelet or pre-sold, with continued high demand from industrial occupiers. Roberts added: “While the challenges of ongoing supply constraints, cost inflation and increasing economic uncertainty cannot be ignored, we believe we remain well placed for the rest of the year, with strong forward sales across all our business lines, a continued pipeline of opportunities for us to meet our strategic growth ambitions and, as ever, a robust financial position”. The group has also identified a number of properties within its £126m investment portfolio for potential sale.   To send feedback, e-mail piers.wehner@eg.co.uk or tweet @PiersWehner or @EGPropertyNews