Watkin Jones: Shares in property developer soar on return to profit
Shares in Watkin Jones soared more than 13 per cent on Thursday after the property developer swung to profit in 2024.
The London-listed firm reported £9.2m in pre-tax profit for the year ended September, up from a £2.9m loss the year prior.
Basic earnings per share also swung to 3.5p, up from a loss of 0.6p in 2023.
The share price surge came despite the company flagging a slower-than-expected ramp up in deal activity over the year.
Revenue fell from £413.2m to £362.4m over the 12 months.
“The group produced a resilient operational performance during FY24, in what remains a difficult investment market,” Alex Pease, chief executive of Watkin Jones, said.
“The slow pace of interest rate cuts and timing of the general election meant that, whilst investor sentiment remained positive, transactional activity has not improved as quickly as expected.”
He added: “We responded by focusing on the factors within our control: successfully delivering our in-build projects and carefully managing our costs.”
Watkin Jones said its medium term outlook remained strong, with around £300m of contractually secure revenue as at 30 September and a £2bn pipeline.
In December, the group secured a new deal to delvier 295 homes in St Helens, with a letter of intent signed on two further schemes.