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Henry Boot PLC on Thursday said it continues to forecast full-year profit in line with expectations, despite signs of lower confidence and cost inflation driven by geopolitical headwinds. Its shares traded 2.9% higher at 162.50 pence in London on Thursday afternoon. It also announced the appointment of Hamer Boot as the permanent managing director of its development division, HBD. Boot, who joined HBD in 2013, assumed day-to-day responsibility for leading its strategic board in December. Henry Boot issued a trading update for 2026 to date ahead of its annual general meeting, with Chief Executive Officer Tim Roberts commenting: ‘Demand remains resilient for our high quality residential land, prime industrial developments and premium homes.’ He continued: ‘While all our businesses made a good start to the year, in recent weeks we have seen early signs that the conflict in the Middle East, together with increasing domestic political uncertainty, is affecting confidence levels...We are also seeing some evidence of cost inflation driven by higher energy and build material prices, although we continue to work closely with suppliers to mitigate the impact.’ The Sheffield, England-based construction and property development business highlighted that its Hallam Land business has exchanged on 465 plots, with a further 2,181 plots under offer, all scheduled for completion this year. It said the current planning environment remains very favourable, but noted that ‘housebuilders are being more selective, with transactions taking longer to complete.’ Still, Henry Boot said the group is well-positioned to meet and grow beyond its medium-term sales target. It also said HBD is experiencing healthy levels of demand, and that its flagship £1 billion Golden Valley development continues to progress well. Additionally, Stonebridge Homes ‘has experienced resilient customer demand’, while Banner Plant trades in line with management expectations. Looking ahead, CEO Roberts commented: ‘Although we remain focused on achieving our annual sales targets and continue to anticipate delivering a profit before tax in line with expectations for 2026, we are also continuing to build long term value across the portfolio.’ The company noted that the 2026 forecast, with market consensus expecting pretax profit of £20.2 million, assumes that conditions ‘do not materially deteriorate’ amid the current geopolitical uncertainty. Henry Boot also expressed confidence in its housing consent and development pipelines, with ‘highquality opportunities across our portfolio’. Copyright 2026 Alliance News Ltd. All Rights Reserved.
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