Countrywide revenue rises on market recovery, core business performance

27th Feb 2014 12:08

Property services group Countrywide posted an 11 per cent rise in total income for the year ended December 31st, driven by signs of recovery in the housing market, increased development activity and the strong performance of its core business.The results came as Chief Executive Grenville Turner announced his plan to step down this year. The company has begun its search for a replacement. The group re-listed in March after six years away from the public market, during which time it said it had transformed the company into a "leaner and more efficient organisation with a greater proportion of sustainable revenue".Revenue climbed from £524.7m to £584.8m, while adjusted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) rose from £63.0m to £86.6m. Operating profit came in at £56.0m, compared to £16.8m in the previous year. Adjusted earnings per share soared from 14.8p to 24.4p. Interim Chairman at Countrywide, David Watson, said: "The group has delivered an excellent set of results for 2013, its first since the initial public offering, which show strong growth in both revenue and profits. Significant financial progress was achieved through the year as recovery within the housing market broadened and performance across all our divisions and regions improved. "Strengthening activity levels are evident in our January 2014 results and pipelines plus external indicators would also show that significant growth in profitability should be sustained through the year ahead."A final dividend of 6p a share was proposed, giving a total payment of 8p for the year. Broker Jefferies reiterated its 'buy' rating on the stock after the results met its expectations, noting that the company's performance improved across all divisions and all regions. It said: "Market trends have continued to improve and the group's activity pipeline hints at significant growth in 2014. We expect earnings per share to double over the next two years." The share price fell 1.68% to 613p by 12:25 Thursday. NR