Shares in Vistry fell sharply on Thursday following the announcement of a £661.3 million half-year loss and plans for a significant business overhaul. This contrasts with a reported pre-tax profit of £40.9 million in the six months to June a year ago.
The results included a £475 million goodwill write-down and an additional £73.2 million provision for building safety costs. Net debt also increased to £468.8 million from £293.1 million a year earlier, while completions decreased by 8% to 6,304 homes.
New chief executive Adam Daniels has outlined a restructuring plan to reduce regional operations from 25 to 12 and target approximately £50 million in additional annual overhead savings. Vistry also intends to scale back its longer-term output ambitions, aiming to deliver around 12,000 homes annually.
The company will withdraw from private open-market sales in the South East, instead focusing on partner-funded housing in the region. Vistry has already achieved £25 million in savings through a voluntary exit programme and recruitment freeze, with further job losses anticipated.
Vistry noted that open-market conditions became more challenging during the summer, attributing this to weaker consumer confidence, affordability pressures, and wider economic uncertainty. The housebuilder has also reduced its full-year adjusted pre-tax profit forecast to around £165 million.