London, June 24, 2026, 16:05 (BST)
- Persimmon shares gained 5.3% to 1,087 pence as of 15:46 BST.
- Berkeley posted a 15% drop in annual pretax profit, but stuck to its £1.4 billion profit forecast for the four years.
- Persimmon is sticking with guidance for 12,000 to 12,500 homes completed in 2026, as long as market conditions don’t worsen.
Persimmon shares jumped on Wednesday. According to delayed pricing, the stock traded close to 1,085 pence, gaining 5.1% from Tuesday’s finish at 1,032.5 pence.
Berkeley posted a pretax profit of £451.4 million for the year to April, down from £528.9 million. The company held its outlook for £1.4 billion in pretax profit spread across the next four financial years. Executive Chair Rob Perrins said: “Every part of the system needs to work to reduce the time taken to get buildings into development.” He asked for a cut in stamp duty, the property purchase tax. TradingView
Barratt Redrow is up 5.4%. Taylor Wimpey added 4.7% in late trade.
Persimmon said on April 30 that weekly private sales per outlet, not counting bulk deals, went up 3% to 0.67. Private forward sales climbed 7% to £1.80 billion. The average price in these forward sales increased 5% to roughly £306,900.
Persimmon, based in York, posted an underlying pretax profit of £445.6 million for 2025. The company’s underlying profit measure strips out certain one-off items. Persimmon manufactures bricks, tiles and timber frames in-house, which the builder says helps it manage supply expenses. RBC Capital Markets analyst Anthony Codling said Persimmon was “performing ahead of its peers.” Reuters
Savills expects England to build about 167,500 homes a year on average up to 2029/30, missing the government’s target of 300,000 per year. Emily Williams, director of residential research at Savills, said completions are set to “fall sharply in the short term”, with just 152,000 homes expected in 2026/27. Intermediary News
The sector’s gains might not last if borrowing costs go up or home sales stall. Traders are betting on at least one more Bank of England rate hike by year-end. Persimmon flagged that higher energy costs could push up supply expenses in the back half of 2026 and into 2027. Mortgage costs rising could squeeze affordability. Higher costs for materials could hit margins if companies can’t hike prices or save enough elsewhere.
Persimmon will post half-year results on August 6. The company’s next trading update comes November 12.
