Watkin Jones, which specialises in purpose built student accommodation and built-to-ten developments, has grown revenue by 14% over the past six months and returned to profit.
For the half-year ended 31st March 2024, Watkin Jones generated revenue of £175.1m (2023 H1: £153.9m) and made a pre-tax profit of £2.1m (2023 H1: £0.8m loss).
The company said that current development schemes were all on track, supported by continuing moderation in build cost inflation, and the investment market was gradually showing signs of recovery despite interest rates falling more slowly than expected.
Chief executive Alex Pease said: “First half trading was in line with our expectations, with a focus on execution and operational performance. Alongside progress on our schemes in build, we have continued to develop the Group’s longer term pipeline, with new land secured and further planning applications submitted. There has been gradual improvement in sentiment in the property investment market, which we expect to support a continued recovery in forward fund transaction demand, as evidenced in the forward sale of our PBSA scheme in Bristol in March.
“With our established and specialist end-to-end development platform and a sector leading reputation in the BTR and PBSA markets in the UK, our focus remains on positioning the business to best capitalise on a market recovery.”
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