Shares slump as Crest Nicholson warns on profits

16th Jul 2026 10:28

(Sharecast News) - Shares in Crest Nicholson tumbled on Thursday after the homebuilder swung to an interim loss and trimmed full-year earnings guidance for the second time amid "challenging" market conditions.

Revenues in the six months to 30 April fell to £197.6m from £249.5m a year previously, while the gross margin more than halved to 7.0%, pushing Crest Nicholson into a statutory operating loss of £26.2m. A year earlier it had posted a £18.8m profit.

Home completions fell to 584 from 739, while net debt soared to £141.8m from £71.5m.

Crest Nicholson, which is in discussions with its lenders, said speculation about possible changes to property taxes in the autumn Budget had weighed on the market at the end of 2025. While those concerns proved unfounded, the market was then hit again by a spike in economic and geopolitical uncertainty following the outbreak of war in the Middle East.

The homebuilder continued: "Since April, pricing has generally remained resilient, but customer enquiries, visitor levels and market sentiment has softened. Against this backdrop, the group has adopted a more cautious outlook for the remainder of the financial year."

The group, which first revised down guidance in April, reaffirmed full-year forecasts for volumes of between 1,400 and 1,500 and land sales revenue of around £40m. However, earnings before interest and tax are now expected to come in at the lower half of the previously guided range for between £5m and £15m.

As at 1000 BST, the stock had shed 12% at 65p.

Martyn Clark, chief executive, said: "While market conditions remain challenging, and financial performance in the first half was below the prior year, the group has taken decisive actions to preserve liquidity, reduce capital intensity and strengthen the operational discipline.

"Our lending group remains supportive, and we are in constructive discussions with them to amend certain parts of the revolving credit facility. These discussions are well-progressed, but remain ongoing and we have agreed further temporary waivers to allow us time to document and complete a covenant amendment."

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