No recommendation
No news or research item is a personal recommendation to deal. Hargreaves Lansdown may not share ShareCast's (powered by Digital Look) views.
(Sharecast News) - Property developer Berkeley Group laid out a refreshed strategy on Wednesday as it looks to navigate what it called a "prolonged challenging market backdrop" marked by higher costs, tighter regulation and ongoing economic uncertainty.
Berkeley will focus on extracting value from its existing land bank of more than 50,000 homes and will pause standalone land acquisitions, limiting new sites to jointventure structures.
The FTSE 100-listed firm also plans to cut operating costs by 25% to 150m and reduce land creditors from 900m to 470m.
Berkeley said it expects to deliver 450m in pretax profits in FY26, in line with guidance put in place two years ago, and around 300m in net cash.
Looking ahead, it expects to generate more than 1.4bn in pretax profits over the next four years and said shareholder returns would continue to be supported by buybacks, with shares currently trading below net asset value per share. It also said it was targeting a return on capital employed in its core business of "at least 15%" as soon as possible, and between 11% and 15% in the intervening years.
As of 0815 BST, Berkeley shares were down 8.15% at 3,156p.
Reporting by Iain Gilbert at Sharecast.com
See latest RNS on Investegate
The value of investments can go down in value as well as up, so you could get back less than you invest. It is therefore important that you understand the risks and commitments. This website is not personal advice based on your circumstances. So you can make informed decisions for yourself we aim to provide you with the best information, best service and best prices. If you are unsure about the suitability of an investment please contact us for advice.