(BDEV.L) Barratt Developments PLC Buy/Sell

Today's london evening standard comments (p 57) that bdev shareprice fell because Nationwide building society today announced a steep profit-drop, forecast a “slow” economic recovery, and warned the recent rally in house prices could run out of steam.
On page 54 though, columnist Peter Bill reveals 'foreign buyers snapping up 'too-dear' london homes ( www.thisislondon.co.uk/standard-business/article-23772109-foreign-buyers-snapping-up-too-dear-london-homes.do )
In other words failing building societies are spooking the homes-market so johny-foreigner can buy us up cheap. Ah well, twas ever thus...

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they are much on par with t/w but there land bank is over valued it is double of redrow land bank dont jump in with to much cash still a big risk worth a small punt for long term

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Sorry I do not have answer but can someone please explain continuing fall? I had meeting with someone from Barratt yesterday and they were very positive about the future, B's landbank is less distressed than say TW who paid top dollar for everything, I am tempted to jump in.

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what happens on the 11th?

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Things are stable, not in freefall. BDEV have breathing space to figure how to be profitable at this lowly level.

No great gains will be made until genuine feverish recovery begins on September 11th 2011.

For now, they just need to concentrate on not losing money.

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I agree the market is forward looking - that's why the builders are 20-30+% off their peaks of couple of months ago. The market is saying, "umm not so sure anymore, might take my money and look elsewhere" leaving the lumpen clowns holding onto this toxic garbage company that is busily engaged in acquiring more of your wealth through further RI.

I'm looking into shorting the Halifax future price in the not too distant future.

Timing is everything - I think there's some spillover from the summer bull run to feed through yet.

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yes but hitting the red tick button was even simpler for me

plus what ur actually showing is that the climate has improved form 2008, has it not?

thats what the market wants to know, if things are getting worse or better, the market looks foward jockey, not backward like u and if every major house builder has seen stablisation then that is a good thing no matter how much u can twist it into a negative

put ur money where ur mouth is, go short from here on the builders, i will go long and we will see in 6, 12, 18 or 24 months who backs the most profit

ahhhhhhhhhh fank u

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I think you will see that the 34% was reservations per site per week over the last period. Less sites to compare and not looking at a full year hence full year figures very different. Still showing growth though and with rights done successfully should go up from here.

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you should be getting around 21p per share, it was on an RNS around 1 week ago.

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Simple

2008 had the lowest sales in 50 years (the market as a whole).

BDEV had a YoY improvement of 3% in 2009 vs 2008.

This is lame.

That is the drift of my post.

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I don't entirely get the drift of the poster's comment:
", a very small improvement on a year that had the lowest sales in 50 years."
My questions:
Has bdev been around for 50years?
If not, were bdev's sales in 2008 the lowest they'd ever been?
Or, were bdev's sales in 2008 relatively better than their peers?
If the latter, a 3% increase this year might bode well, no?
If the formar, it still doesn't bode ill does it?

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The final option of the issue was to let them lapse and a payment will (may) be creditied. This I did due to missing the deadline.

Can anyone tell me how much? how is this calculated and when this is likely to happen?

Many thanks

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Yesterday Trevor Greetham wrote in the financial times that we are at the start of what will be a sustained bull share-market and hp recovery: www.ft.com/cms/s/0/600fca34-d38d-11de-9607-00144feabdc0.html . Today bdev is down. Well, we'll see or no see, in due course, no doubt.

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surely getting my red crayon out was far easier?

and anyway, without even reading ur post it was obvious u would put a negative spin on anything u find, stevie wonder could see through ur agenda

ur like a broken record, thats why i voted u down, coz ur soooooooooo boring

u think we are in the great depression, anybody that deluded will get a negative tick from me

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Could you imagine having shareholders, it seems horiffic, however the boss man seems to be handling it rather well, always good for confidence.
RM

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http://www.iii.co.uk/articles/articledisplay.jsp?section=Markets&article_id=10060962

Building investor confidence in the housebuilding sector after a property market slump is as difficult a task as selling houses when mortgage availability has dried up.

Still someone has to do it and on both counts, it fell to Barratt Developments (BDEV) to take matters in hand at its 51st annual general meeting.

In a brightly lit, sparsely decorated room tucked away in UBS' London offices, around 60 shareholders turned up to find out just how that £720 million from the recent fundraising will be spent - and of course what is happening to their dividend payments.

These were suspended back in June 2008 as part of the housebuilder's cash conservation policy much to the chagrin of income seekers.

One shareholder railed against the terms of the bank facilities which imposed restrictions on the payment of dividends. However, chairman Bob Lawson quickly pointed out that the company was in no position to pay dividends even if its banking terms had allowed it to do so.

The board remains focused on strengthening the balance sheet and conserving cash, he said, even though it is still committed to dividend payments. Investors will have to console themselves that the company is "in a very different place now" until payments resume in 2010.

His responses did not sit well with one seasoned Barratt investor who accused the board of "tottering from mishap to mishap".

"I do not agree," Lawson fired back. "We are beginning to improve our position and we have positioned ourselves to grow in the future by making investment in key areas. The market has taken a dive and of course we have suffered."

In the group's interim management statement released yesterday, net reservation levels were up, its forward order book was strengthening and activity levels were stabilising - all promising signs that the property market is finally finding its feet.

However, Lawson stressed that the recovery remains dependent on external factors such as mortgage availability.

Internal factors were in hand, he reassured the sea of attentive faces before him. "The board is extremely well qualified to address the issues facing the company," Lawson said. "We are extremely well positioned for the upturn when it comes. I am very confident in the direction we are taking."

The money used from the rights issue has helped to cut debt levels and put Barratt in a "strong position" to buy land and open new sites as opportunities emerge.

New finance director David Thomas got a bit of a grilling over his calculation of intangible assets with one shareholder questioning whether the £2.9 billion figure in its full-year results was a mistake - six times higher than it was six months ago. "No mistake" said Thomas embarking on a lengthy explanation about the role of future cash-flows in his three-year business plan.

Thomas, who took over the reins from Mark Pain in June, also saw his "golden hello" go under the microscope with one shareholder terming it "excessive".

Lawson was quick to put his best PR foot forward. Barratt wanted to attract the highest level of finance director, he said, and therefore the share option scheme was justified.

"We have to operate in the real world and attract the right calibre of people. We want to create a level playing field where everyone is rewarded fairly," he added referring to other board members.

He also dismissed concerns that the board had only one member with a surveying background. "We have a very balanced board. It is as exactly as we would wish to have for the company."

Amid pledges to push forward with its environmental plans including building a carbon zero estate and further support for struggling first-time buyers, the Barratt board sailed through onto its resolutions - which were all duly passed.

As Lawson drew the meeting to a close, he seemed to have built investors' appetites as well their confidence

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Get Level 2 now for only £20.00!

Anyway,

"net private reservations averaging 204 per week (2008: 197)"

This equates to a:

** 3% increase vs 2008 **

, a very small improvement on a year that had the lowest sales in 50 years.

The market was pretty unmoved by it all.

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Welshski - Why not do the math- rather than vote down a straightforward post?

Too tough for you?

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why the drop today?

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csense (or anyone else)

Work out how many sites they had last year vs this year. Then see if it is a 34% increase, or a lower increase, or a nominal decrease like TW (despite the silly headlines).

I won't do another 4 page hatchet job - but if someone can find the site numbers that would help. Work calls

Mr Jockey

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