Over the six months to 2nd July 2023, Taylor Wimpey saw revenue fall 21% to £1,637m (2022 H1: £2,077m) and pre-tax profit fall 29% to £237.7m (2022 H1: £334.5m).
However, with 5,120 completions (2022 H1: 6,922), this was slightly ahead of expectations.
Full year UK completions, excluding joint ventures, is expected to be in the range of 10,000 to 10,500.
Taylor Wimpey ended the period with net cash of £654.9m, up from £642.4m a year ago.
The company also reports build cost inflation is coming down.
“In terms of costs, we have seen some moderation in the rate of material and labour cost inflation,” said chief executive Jennie Daly, “with prevailing annualised build cost inflation on new tenders now around 6% compared to around 9-10% at the start of the year. We expect to continue to see inflation moderate as the year progresses.”
However, planning remains “extremely challenging”, she said, “and is likely to impact the future delivery of new homes across our industry”.
Summarising the first-half performance, Jennie Daly said: “The first half of the year has been characterised by variable market conditions including substantially higher mortgage rates. While this has inevitably impacted our results, I am pleased that we have delivered a resilient performance with first-half completions slightly ahead of our expectations. This performance is testament to the hard work of our teams on the ground and our strong focus on operational excellence and tight cost management.
“As we move into the second half of the year, our focus remains on optimising all areas of our operations as we continue to support our customers during this uncertain period. With a healthy orderbook and strong underlying interest for our well-located, high-quality homes, we expect full year UK completions excluding joint ventures to be in the range of 10,000 to 10,500, the upper end of our previous guidance.
“Taylor Wimpey is a strong, sustainable and agile business underpinned by a robust balance sheet and an excellent landbank. We remain well positioned to manage the business through near term challenges while maximising value in the medium to long term.”
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