The information contained in this
announcement is deemed by the Company to constitute inside
information for the purposes of Article 7 of the Market Abuse
Regulation (EU) No. 596/2014 which forms part of domestic law in
the United Kingdom pursuant to the European Union (Withdrawal) Act
2018
Crest Nicholson Holdings
plc
(the 'Group' or 'Crest
Nicholson')
AGM
Crest Nicholson Holdings plc is
holding its Annual General Meeting ('AGM') at 11:00 am today
at the Group's Head Office: 500 Dashwood Lang Road,
Bourne Business Park, Addlestone, Surrey KT15
2HJ. This trading update is for the period
from 1 November 2023 to 15 March 2024. The Company's FY24 year end
is on 31 October 2024.
Current trading
The Group has achieved reservations in
line with expectations and delivered a year-to-date open market
SPOW rate of 0.44, based on 46 outlets, with reduced activity
before Christmas and a stronger performance from mid-January.
The SPOW rate for the last eight weeks to 15 March 2024 improved to
0.52. Sale prices achieved have been in line with
expectations and cancellations remained at normalised levels. Build
activity in the sector continued to operate at a lower level which
is now resulting in lower labour costs in some areas. Overall build
cost inflation has largely stabilised and at a level lower than
prior year.
The Group remains focused on improving
customer service and since February 2023 has consistently achieved
>90% customer satisfaction rating.
The planning system continues to be
challenging. Our strong land portfolio with several quality sites
acquired last year places us in a favourable position to mitigate
planning delays and support future outlet growth.
Farnham and other legacy sites
Construction at the Farnham
development and other legacy sites which are still being completed
is progressing largely as planned.
Pre
2019 completed sites
Since the publication of the FY23
results, the Group has become aware of certain build defects
predominantly on four sites that were completed prior to 2019 when
the Group closed its Regeneration and London divisions. These sites
will require remediation over the next three years at an estimated
cost of up to £15m. As a result, the Board has decided to
appoint third party consultants to provide greater assurance on the
adequacy of current provisions around these and other sites
completed prior to 2019. A further update will be provided at the
Group's interim results in June.
Outlook
The Group continues to focus on
optimising value and expects FY24 completions to be in the range of
1,800 to 2,000 homes, with completions weighted approximately
35/65% in favour of the second half of the year, reflecting the
opening order book and the low level of reservations in the first
two months of the financial year. Sales prices are expected to
remain stable in FY24. Net debt at the end of February 2024 is
tracking lower than expected as a result of lower build and land
spend and this trend is expected to continue in the remainder of
the financial year.
The person responsible for arranging
the release of this announcement on behalf of the Company is Penny
Thomas, Group Company Secretary.
For further information, please
contact:
Crest Nicholson
Jenny Matthews, Head of Investor
Relations
+44 (0) 7557 842720
Teneo
James Macey White / Giles Kernick
+44 (0) 207 260 2700
19 March 2024