Barratt shareholders to get extra payout as full-year profits soar by 45%

9th Sep 2015 07:24

(ShareCast News) - Barratt shareholders are set for a cash windfall as the housebuilder reported a 44.8% increase in full-year pre-tax profits to £565.5m on the back of a 19% jump in revenues to £3.7bn.Shareholders will get a final dividend of 10.3p a share, up from 7.1p last time. The company is also handing back £100m in cash in November under its Capital Return Plan.The total proposed capital return for the year is 25.1p a share compared with 10.3p in 2014. Barratt added that net cash at 30 June 2015 was £186.5m, from £73.1m in 2014.Chief executive David Thomas said the new financial year had started "very well". Sales were strong in the first 10 weeks, with 257 net private reservations a week up from 224.Total forward sales at 6 September 2015 were up 32.2% at a value of £2.3bn, equating to 10,755 plots against 8,507 plots at the same time last year."We have a strong forward sales position and are making very good progress towards our full-year 2017 targets of at least a 20% gross margin and at least a 25% return on capital employed," Thomas said.The company reported a significant increase in housing completions with the private average selling price up by 8.7% to £262,500 driven by further changes in mix and house price inflation.