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(Sharecast News) - Savills backed its full-year expectations on Thursday as it posted a rise in first-half profit and revenue, with year-on-year growth across all business segments and a "significant" improvement in profitability in North America.
In the six months to the end of June, underlying pre-tax profit was up 47% to £34.4m, on revenue of £1.2bn, up 9% on the same period a year earlier. Savills said revenue was driven by strong growth in its transactional businesses across all regions, a resilient performance from its less transactional businesses and the positive impact of previous restructuring.
Group reported pre-tax profit fell to £7m during the period from £15.8m, partly due to one-off costs associated with the acquisition of US real estate investment bank Eastdil Secured.
The interim dividend was lifted 5% to 7.8p a share.
Savills said conviction in the market's underlying fundamentals remains strong, and markets have stayed active, with global investment volumes up 18% in the first six months of the year.
The company said the US market has been the key driver of this growth, with first-half investment volumes up 24%, versus a 12% decline for the UK.
"Much of this has been driven by portfolio sales and large-scale M&A activity, reflecting growing confidence among institutional investors," it said. "Demand is underpinned by fundamentals-led thematic strategies, with Data Centres, Industrial assets and Senior Living attracting significant investor attention. The recovery of the US Office sector continues to gain conviction."
Sentiment in the UK market was more affected by the escalating conflict in the Middle East and its impact on interest rates, Savills said, and after a positive first quarter, activity slowed as investors assessed the implications of the conflict and anticipated political change in the UK.
Chief executive Simon Shaw said: "Looking forward, the enlarged group's pipelines are strong, and although transaction timelines are hard to predict in the current environment, I am confident that we are well positioned to deliver value to our clients, colleagues and shareholders."
At 0816 BST, the shares were up 3.6% at 1,016p.
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