By Millie Turner
Berkeley, one of the biggest housebuilders in the country, is on track to hit £600m in pre-tax profit this financial year and £625m the next despite spiralling costs.
The FTSE housebuilder said that current levels of demand for homes in the UK is “sufficient to cover the cost increases”, as inflation hits energy, raw materials and labour costs.
The company rewarded shareholders with a £23.3m dividend last month, which is expected to land in pockets later this week.
Berkeley is also set to return a further £141.1m to shareholders by the end of March next year, through a combination of dividends and share buybacks. Some £38m has already been returned.
In its latest trading update for the four months to 31 August, Berkeley said its forward sales are expected to inch higher than the £2.17bn it held at the end of April.
“The operating environment remains volatile and little changed over the couple of months since the June results announcement,” the company said in a statement today.
“Berkeley’s current strategy focuses on ensuring each site has the most appropriate development solution reflective of prevailing requirements, whilst new land will only be added to the land holdings very selectively.”
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