St Modwen has found a buyer for its Nine Elms site
St Modwen's share price climbed today after it said it had found a purchaser for its Nine Elms site.
The developer's share price was up two per cent at time of writing – even though the company also reported a slide in profits.
The figures
In its results for the year ending 30 November, St Modwen said its profit before tax had tumbled to £60.8m from £258.4m the year before. The total dividend for the year increased 4.3 per cent, however, rising from 5.75p per share in 2015 to 6p per share this year.
The average selling price of a St Modwen home rose 4.6 per cent, up from £197,000 to £206,000, which the builder said showed the "strength of demand for quality housing in the regions".
Why it's interesting
Last year St Modwen said it was putting its Nine Elms site up for sale and was also forced to cut £21m from the site's value due to falling house prices in central London. Today, however, the company had some good news and said it had entered into negotiations with a potential purchaser "at a level which is firmly supportive of book value".
What St Modwen said
Mark Allan, chief executive of St Modwen, said: "Active commercial property development and asset management, coupled with a strongly performing and growing residential arm, contributed to another good year for St Modwen.
"Following my recent arrival as chief executive, we have commenced a review of what I already believe is a fundamentally strong business and portfolio to determine our strategy moving forward. We unquestionably have an opportunity to build on our existing strengths while ensuring that our activities are focused in the optimum way and I am excited about the prospects ahead."