4 March 2026
If you are covering Vistry’s latest financial results, please find below a comment from Oli Creasey, head of property research at Quilter Cheviot:
“Vistry's results this morning are mixed, with information that will interest both investors and those on the sidelines. 2025 performance was lacklustre - revenues fell 4%, stretching the definition of "broadly flat" that was used in the company's trading statement in January, driven by a drop in completions of 9%. However, while adjusted operating profit fell marginally, earnings per share grew (6% adjusted / 92% reported) as a result of a reduced share count from the ongoing share buyback programme, and a £100m reduction in exceptional items.
“The 2026 outlook is positive, with an expectation for revenues and volumes to return to growth, albeit with a further drop in margin. The year-to-date performance is quite remarkable, with the sales rate of 1.42x more than double that achieved at the start of last year. While not said explicitly, the implication is that the company is discounting prices quite aggressively in order to drive volumes up, as this sales rate is well in excess of anything housebuilders have achieved recently, or even at the very peak of Help to Buy.
“However, perhaps the most important news this morning is the announced retirement of Executive Chairman Greg Fitzgerald, who will first step down from the Chairman role in May 2026, and then the CEO role by March 2027. Mr Fitzgerald has been instrumental in shoring up the company in the wake of the wave of profit warnings in late 2024, expanding his role to include the Chair of the board shortly after. While the company is still a long way from the highs of 2024, share price performance has been steady since the start of 2025, and his successor's will inherit a company with increasingly firm foundations.”
