Persimmon PLC (LSE:PSN) said it has seen a strong upturn in sales since October as it raised its expectations for the number of home sale completions it expects for the year.
The housebuilder said in the past five weeks private sales rates have improved to 0.59, compared to 0.45 last year, showing a “strong pick up” since the start of October.
“We are on track to deliver around 9,500 completions for 2023 with operating profit in line with expectations and at an operating margin similar to the first half,” the firm said, a better outcome than the 9,000 completions previously forecast.
The company said pricing remains broadly stable, although it has seen a slight reduction in group private average selling price in the forward order book and an increase in the use of incentives, particularly in the South where affordability constraints are greater.
Third-quarter trading was in line with expectations, delivering a total of 1,439 homes, down from 2,270 homes a year ago.
The private selling price on completions was up 2% in the quarter on the prior year at £296,822 while average private sales per outlet per week were 0.48 in the period (Q3 2022: 0.63).
Dean Finch, chief executive, said: “While the near term is likely to remain challenging and we remain disciplined on costs, we continue to position the business for growth when the market recovers, as demonstrated by our further progress on planning in the period.”