Housebuilding group cautiously optimistic
The group — which operates here, in Britain and parts of mainland Europe — yesterday reported a pre-tax profit of €11.5 million for the 12 months to the end of April.
This figure was down from a profit of €15.2m in the previous financial year. However, the profit for the latest year was hit by a tax charge of €3.3m and an impairment charge — chiefly relating to Abbey’s Irish operations — of €1.9m.
Operating profit for the year fell from €12.8m to €9.4m and a full-year dividend of 5c per share (down from 8c in the previous year) is recommended to shareholders.
While conditions in Abbey’s core markets have been dull of late, company chairman Charles Gallagher maintains the group will still perform positively this year, depending on the growth of the British market, and despite conditions in Ireland.
“In Ireland, conditions remain very difficult and our main focus continues to be clearing inventory,” he said. “The outlook for the year ahead is for more hard won progress. The re-stocking of our UK land bank — now under way — will be the key to our results in the foreseeable future. Increasing turnover will not necessarily be accompanied by increasing profits — at least in the short-term as margins may be undermined by cost inflation and the fierce competition for immediately developable building land.
“However, in the absence of further bad news in the general economy, a gradual steady return to normal trading in England is clearly in prospect,” Mr Gallagher added.
In all, Abbey completed 303 house sales last year — 224 of which were in Britain and the remainder in Ireland (58) and the Czech Republic (21). Mr Gallagher said that the Czech business made an operating profit for the second consecutive year and the group’s plant hire division, M&J made an operating profit of €284,000.
