10 March 2026
If you are covering the latest financial results from Persimmon, please find below a comment from Oli Creasey, head of property research at Quilter Cheviot:
“Persimmon's full year results stand out from some of its peers for the progress achieved by the company in 2025. All key metrics have grown year-on-year and many of them at a double-digit rate, from the 16% revenue increase to the 13% growth in profit before tax. The sequential improvement wasn't uniform in all metrics - the weekly sales rate of 0.70x is flat year-on-year following a relatively weak fourth quarter for bulk sales, and the operating margin improved 20 basis points to 14.3%. While that margin uplift is small compared to other data in the Persimmon results, it compares well to other housebuilders, several of whom have experienced margin declines in 2025, and many of whom are stuck with profitability below 10%.
“Management suggests that 2026 trading conditions are "supportive" so far, with a material improvement in the Winter/Spring sales rate to 0.73x (from 0.67x for the same period last year), and a 6% increase in the size of the forward order book. Management is targeting 12,000-12,500 home completions in 2026, which would represent 3% growth - not an enormous increase, but Persimmon is arguably further ahead on the recovery path than other builders. More encouraging for investors is the guidance on profit, while expected to be in-line with analyst consensus, that consensus suggests a 12% growth In earnings per share for 2026.
“It bears noting that the outlook remarks for 2026 assume a limited impact on build cost inflation and interest and mortgage rates from the ongoing Iran war, and a deeper impact will likely result in downward revisions, both for Persimmon and other housebuilders across the sector. Not for the first time, macro events outside of the company's control seem likely to determine whether this year will see further progress or not.
“Also notable is the absence of any mention of demand-side support from the Government. In the past year or so, housebuilders have been seen to call for a return to Help 2 Buy (or similar) to assist with first-time buyer affordability. These calls appear to have gone quiet, with Persimmon no longer citing the Government's "pro-housebuilding agenda" in the 2025 results (a remark made multiple times in 2024).”
