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Berkeley Group: A residential housebuilder with a high percentage of its developments on brown field land. Established in 1976, the company now includes the Berkeley Homes, St George and St James brands, with important exposure to the high value London property market.
Shares in issue 131.28m (Oct '10)
Currently no dividend (Oct '10)
Forecast PE apr '11 13.2, to apr '12 11.6.

Friday December 2nd, Upmarket London housing developer Berkeley Group will comment on Friday on the health of the housing market and its views on the Government proposals to boost mortgage availability. Berkeley is forecast by analysts to post a rise in half-year revenue and profits when it publishes results. For the full-year, the consensus among analysts is for revenues to rise 15pc and pre-tax profits 22pc.

StockMarketWire.com
House builder Berkeley Group's pre-tax profits jumped by 64.1% to 101.1m in the six months to the end of October.

Revenues were up 20.4% at 404.9m and operating profits soared by 82.8% to 107.1m while after-tax profits rose by 67.4% to 74.0m.

Chairman Tony Pidgley said: "Looking forward, the further increase in forward sales and the strong balance sheet, which remains ungeared, means Berkeley is increasingly well positioned to capitalise on the current market conditions.

"In terms of the housing industry more generally, the recent announcements which are aimed at stimulating the delivery of new homes are welcome.

"On the supply side, the draft National Planning Policy Framework addresses many of the obstacles within the current planning system and, if implemented, will put in place the conditions to allow developers to bring forward new planning applications with the necessary safeguards to ensure this takes place in harmony with the natural environment."

Investec initiates buy on Berkeley Group, target price 1500p.

Final Results

PROFIT BEFORE TAX UP 57.7% FROM £136.2 MILLION TO £214.8 MILLION

PRE-TAX RETURN ON EQUITY INCREASED FROM 15.3% TO 21.2%

VALUE OF LAND BANK UP 12.0% TO £2.58 BILLION OF FUTURE GROSS MARGIN

These seem to be breaking out this morning - at their highest since 2008.

Interim Management Statement

Trading for the period has been in line with the Board's expectations. In addition, the completion of 149 properties at Grosvenor Waterside in the period, out of the 185 remaining properties which had previously been forecast to be delivered over the next three years, has benefitted earnings in the current year which are currently anticipated to be at the top end of analysts' expectations. All these properties were paid for in full at the year end and no additional cash will be generated by the business from the acceleration of these sales.

Sold my holding - been in since since Nov 2011 at 1225p

Interim Management Statement

The Berkeley Group Holdings plc ("Berkeley" or "the Group") today announces its Interim Management Statement in respect of the period from 1 November 2012 to 28 February 2013.

Berkeley remains on course to return £568 million in cash to shareholders by no later than the first milestone date of 30 September 2015 and, as announced on 7 December 2012, the Board has declared an interim dividend of 15 pence per ordinary share which will be paid on 19 April 2013 to shareholders on the register on 22 March 2013. This dividend will contribute approximately £20 million towards the £568 million target and is the first return to shareholders since Berkeley repositioned the business in March 2009 and invested some £1 billion in new land at the right point in the cycle.

Berkeley's operating model places an emphasis on adding value throughout the development cycle whilst recognising the risks of operating in a cyclical market. This requires a collaborative approach to creating places which involves local communities, councils and businesses, and a passion for exceptional design to provide the homes in which our customers want to live.

It is this emphasis which has helped Berkeley secure eight further planning consents since the Half Year including recent resolutions to grant planning on two London schemes, at Hampton House on Albert Embankment and Sovereign Court in Hammersmith. These successes have secured additional value in Berkeley's land bank as well as reducing planning risk and underpinning the Group's ability to deliver against its long term plan subject to market conditions.

In the period Berkeley has also acquired three new sites at Finchley, Mill Hill and Maidenhead. These acquisitions, together with our continued drive to add value through optimisation which is expected to maintain the momentum reported in the first half, give the Board confidence towards achieving its target of 10% growth in the land bank for the full year.

The market for new homes in London and the South East is still characterised by a shortage of supply at all price levels, albeit that this market is affected by the drag on demand caused by restrictions on mortgage availability and increased regulation. In this environment, Berkeley has continued to carefully match its investment in work in progress with forward sales which are now in excess of £1.4 billion, a balance which will remain the key determinant of future growth.

Berkeley is currently ungeared and has a strong land bank in place, factors that give the Board confidence that it will meet expectations for the year ending 30 April 2013 and its long term plan to return £13 per share to shareholders.


END

:-)

Panmure Gordon Sell 1,972.00 1,975.00 1,702.00 1,702.00 Downgrades

Numis Buy 1,972.00 1,975.00 - 2,478.00 Upgrades

Final Results

PERFORMANCE

· Profit before tax up 26.0% to £270.7 million (2012: £214.8 million)
· Operating margin before exceptional item up 1.6% to 20.4% (2012: 18.8%)
· Pre-tax return on shareholders' equity of 22.4% (2012: 21.2%)
· £314.6 million invested in land in the year acquiring a further 3,021 residential plots
· Basic earnings per share increased by 32.2% to 160.0 pence (2012: 121.0 pence)
· Further interim dividend of 59 pence per share payable in September 2013

BALANCE SHEET

· Net cash of £44.7 million (April 2012: net debt of £57.9 million)
· Cash due on forward sales of £1,452.8 million (April 2012: £1,055.7 million)
· Shareholders' equity up £222.6 million to £1,322.4 million (April 2012: £1,099.8 million)
· Net Asset Value per share up 20.2% to 1,009.1 pence (April 2012: 839.3 pence)
· 25,684 plots in land bank (April 2012: 26,021)
· Future anticipated gross margin in land bank up 10.5% to £2,852 million (April 2012: £2,580 million)

Ex divi wed 28th aug (59p)

Interim Management Statement

StockMarketWire.com
House builder Berkeley Group Holdings reported pretax profit up 19.2% to £169.5m in the half-year to end-October. Basic earnings per share increased by 22% to 100p and interim dividend is raised to 90p.

· Operating margin of 20.7% (2012: 21.3%)

· Operating profit includes £29.6 million on disposal of 534 investment properties to M&G Investments

· Pre-tax return on shareholders' equity of 25.0% (2012: 24.5%)

· £278 million invested in land in the period acquiring a further 1,754 residential plots

· Basic earnings per share increased by 22.0% to 100.0 pence (2012: 82.0 pence)

· Interim dividend of 90 pence per share (2012: 15 pence per share) payable in January 2014

BALANCE SHEET

· Cash due on forward sales increased by £293.0 million (20.2%) to £1,745.8 million (April 2013: £1,452.8 million)

· Shareholders' equity up £69.0 million to £1,391.4 million (April 2013: £1,322.4 million)

· Net asset value per share up 5.3% to 1,062 pence (April 2013: 1,009 pence)

· Land holdings comprise 25,060 plots (April 2013: 25,684 plots) and a further 10,000 plots in the future pipeline

· Future anticipated gross margin in the land holdings up 6.8% to £3,047 million (April 2013: £2,852 million)

· Net cash of £78.9 million (April 2013: £44.7 million)

Chairman A. W. Pidgley, said: 'I am delighted to report another period of strong performance. Basic earnings per share have increased by 22.0% to 100.0 pence per share and we have achieved our target of growing our land holdings to over £3 billion earlier than originally guided. This performance maintains the Board's view that Berkeley is on course to meet the first milestone payment of £568 million by September 2015 and to return £1.7 billion in cash to shareholders no later than September 2021.

'The Board has declared a further interim dividend of 90 pence per share (£117.9 million), payable in January 2014, leaving a balance of 270 pence per share (£353.8 million) to be paid in order to meet the first milestone. This now places the Group firmly ahead of its original timetable and on target to reach the first milestone. Subject to prevailing market conditions, the Board intends to maintain a regular distribution of dividends in the period to September 2015.

'The long-term challenge for the country is to deal with the significant housing shortfall which continues to grow. Over the last five years Berkeley has doubled the size of its business, investing over £1.5 billion into land and over £2.5 billion into build, sustaining 16,000 direct and indirect jobs each year and building over 15,000 homes of every tenure in vibrant new places. The Group is now delivering more new homes than immediately prior to the financial crisis in 2008 and is building on every one of its sites which has a viable planning consent and vacant possession. Berkeley has the capacity to invest further, which would create more homes and jobs, but is concerned by the increased uncertainty created by the ongoing debates surrounding the future of property taxation and international buyers.

'In closing, I would like to express my thanks to all the employees of Berkeley for their dedication and hard work. We have positioned Berkeley with a plan to deliver long-term sustainable success and are confident that we can achieve this, whilst remaining mindful of the risks of operating in a cyclical market which is sensitive to the uncertainty of political decision-making and the rhetoric of regulatory change.'

StockMarketWire.com
Barclays Capital has downgraded its recommendation on residential property developer Berkeley Group (LON:BKG) to "underweight" from "equal weight" given its high valuation, relative to peers, and sees better value to be had elsewhere in the housebuilding sector. The broker pointed out that BKG is trading on the highest 2015E PER in the sector at around 12.9x. Analysts also believe the company's significant London exposure, while protecting it from any changes to the governments Help to Buy scheme, means sales and earnings could be impacted by rising interest rates and strengthening sterling. Nevertheless, BarCap has upped its price target to 2,561.5 pence per share (from 2,454.7 pence).

Interim Management Statement

The Berkeley Group Holdings plc ("Berkeley" or "the Group") today announces its Interim Management Statement which covers the period from 1 November 2013 to 28 February 2014.

Berkeley has continued to invest in the delivery of new homes and focus on creating fantastic places. This investment has enabled us to create jobs, employing over 10,000 people on our sites, contribute to local communities and build in excess of 10% of all new affordable homes in London over the last six years. Berkeley is proud of its growing contribution to the UK housing market and this year it anticipates completing some 30% more homes than at the peak of the market in 2007.

Alongside a positive trading environment and a period of wider economic growth, the Government's Help to Buy scheme has increased activity in the property market and so has helped the acceleration of delivery of new homes across the sector. We are working to deliver more, but reiterate the importance of maintaining a stable and predictable regulatory and taxation environment to enable this continued investment.

In respect of trading, sales of new build properties across all of the Berkeley brands have been strong. Cash due on forward sales is now in excess of £1.9 billion (up from £1.75 billion at 31 October 2013) reflecting this continued demand for new homes in London and the South of England. Following payment of the dividend of £117.9 million (90 pence per share) on 17 January 2014, the Group remains ungeared.

Berkeley has now paid £1.64 per share of dividends, equivalent to £215 million, towards the first milestone of £568 million by September 2015. This leaves further dividends of £2.70 per share to be paid by the first milestone date and the Board is satisfied that Berkeley is well placed to achieve this through a series of regular dividends.

As previously stated, Berkeley has the land with implementable planning permissions in place that will enable the Group to achieve the second milestone, equivalent to further dividends of £4.33 per share by September 2018.

The Group has increased its land holdings with the acquisition of five further sites since the half year. Of these, two will be immediately added to our land holdings and three sites included in our future pipeline as they are controlled conditionally, dependent on securing a planning permission and vacant possession.

This activity leaves the Group well-positioned to maintain the estimated future gross margin in its land holdings at £3 billion whilst continuing to deliver sustainable returns on equity. Approximately 86% of the Group's land holdings have an implementable planning permission and all of these sites are in the course of construction, consistent with our previous disclosures in December.

In light of the progress made in the delivery and completion of Berkeley's developments in the period, the Board reiterates its previous guidance that full year earnings are likely to be towards the top of the range of analysts' current expectations.

END

Final Results

OPERATIONAL HIGHLIGHTS

· 3,742 new homes completed in the year, some 30% more than at the peak of the market in 2007
· Consistent delivery of around 10% of all new homes built in London over the last five years
· £353 million invested in nine new sites in the year, sufficient to build a further 2,500 new homes
· All of Berkeley's sites which benefit from an implementable planning consent are in construction

PERFORMANCE

· Basic earnings per share increased by 38.6% to 221.8 pence (2013: 160.0 pence)
· Pre-tax return on equity of 27.5% (2013: 22.4%)
· Net cash of £129.2 million (April 2013: net cash of £44.7 million)
· Net asset value per share up 5.6% to 1,065.6 pence (April 2013: 1,009.1 pence)
· Dividends of 149 pence per share (£195.2 million) paid to shareholders in the year

OUTLOOK

· Further interim dividend of 90 pence per share declared, payable in September 2014
· Cash due on forward sales of £2,274 million (April 2013: £1,453 million)
· 24,006 plots (April 2013: 25,684) and future anticipated gross margin of £3,014 million (April 2013: £2,852 million) in land holdings
· Pipeline of future land comprises 11,000 plots and potential gross margin of £1,500 million to be unlocked over the next five years

Ex-divi wed 20th Aug 2014 (90p)

Interim Management Statement


"The last five years have seen a period of sustained investment in land and construction for Berkeley. This has enabled the Group to deliver some 15,750 new homes in London and the South East of England over the period and support over 21,000 jobs directly and in the supply chain in the last year alone. A strong market in the last financial year, in which cash due on forward sales rose to over £2.2 billion, left Berkeley well positioned at the start of this year to maintain its investment and contribution to the UK's economic recovery.

Since the start of the current financial year, the market has reverted to normal transaction levels from the high point in 2013, providing a stable operating environment. Demand for the right product with good design in the best locations has remained resilient and, reflecting this, forward sales have been maintained at the levels previously reported.

In respect of our land holdings, the Board has targeted further growth in the value of potential gross margin over the course of the current year, driven particularly by unlocking planning and gaining access to the land currently held in the pipeline, which comprised over 11,000 plots and had an attributable potential gross margin of some £1.5 billion at the last year end. Good progress has been made in the period to unlock a number of these sites, and we will provide an update on this at the half year. New planning consents at London Dock in Wapping and a site in Chiswick in the period have further enhanced the quality of the land bank held unconditionally and the acquisition of two new sites in the period on a conditional basis into the pipeline provides further visibility on the availability of land in the future.

The disposal of a portfolio of the Group's ground rent assets for £99.8 million, which completed on 17th June 2014, has contributed to a strong operating cash inflow over the period. The Group currently expects to remain ungeared following the dividend payment of 90 pence per share (£121.7 million) on 26 September 2014.

A further 180 pence per share is payable as dividends in order to meet the first milestone of paying 434 pence per share by September 2015. The Board has previously indicated that it will aim to make regular dividend distributions where conditions permit and is on track to meet this commitment. Looking to the next milestone of 433 pence per share in September 2018, the Board intends to meet a proportion of this through regular dividend payments, where market conditions permit.

With a strong balance sheet and land bank Berkeley is well positioned to continue to invest in the business and deliver returns to shareholders. Earnings this year are anticipated to be in line with current market expectations."

END

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National Grid and Berkeley Group launch new property Joint Venture
National Grid plc ("National Grid") and The Berkeley Group Holdings plc ("Berkeley") have today launched a new joint venture, to be named St William Homes LLP ("St William"). This will create major residential and mixed-use developments across London and the South East.

National Grid (through National Grid Property Holdings Limited) has a significant portfolio of surplus brownfield land which it is committed to releasing for development. The launch of St William is intended to bring together land from National Grid's portfolio, initially from across the Greater London area, and combine this with Berkeley's development expertise.

The acquisition of sites by the joint venture will be conditional upon their unencumbered release for development and the receipt of necessary planning permissions. None of the sites is expected to be income generating when acquired by the joint venture. St William aims to commence development activity on its first site in 2016, with the first homes being delivered in 2017.

National Grid and Berkeley will become shareholders of St William, each owning 50% of the equity through SPVs. Funding will be through a combination of shareholder equity and bank funding at an equity to debt ratio of 50:50. The equity investment for each shareholder will be initially capped at £175 million. When combined with bank debt, this will result in the joint venture vehicle having available funding of up to £700 million. These funds will be drawn down to match the working capital requirements of the joint venture as they fall due. Sufficient working capital will be retained in the business to fund ongoing activity, with surplus funds returned to National Grid and Berkeley as agreed between them.

Rob Perrins, Managing Director of Berkeley, said:
"This is good news for house-building. St William will take these redundant sites and turn them into new communities. I am delighted to be working with a partner like National Grid which shares our values and has such a strong pipeline of land and assets."