MJ Gleeson Shares Climb as Company Eyes Spring Rebound

MJ Gleeson (GLE.L), a prominent UK housebuilder focused on affordable homes, released a trading update for the half-year ended December 31, 2025, signaling a resilient performance amidst challenging market conditions.

The company anticipates full-year results to align with current market expectations, instilling confidence in its strategic direction. The report is due on February 11, 2026.

MJ Gleeson shares rose over 2% following the news.

Gleeson Homes, the group's core division, demonstrated robust growth, delivering 848 homes during the period, a 6% increase compared to the 801 homes sold in the same period last year.

Despite subdued demand attributed to economic uncertainty and pre-Budget jitters, net reservation rates improved to 0.75 per site per week (0.48 excluding bulk reservations) from 0.55 (0.44 excluding bulk reservations) year-on-year, indicating a strengthening sales pipeline.

The company's forward order book stands at a healthy 978 plots, significantly higher than the 597 plots recorded at the end of December 2024, with approximately 650 sales expected to materialize before the financial year's end. This strong order book provides a solid foundation for future revenue generation.

MJ Gleeson is actively focused on enhancing margin performance through targeted increases in selling prices and volume growth. This strategy aims to counteract the impact of incentives, build cost inflation, and the increasing burden of regulatory compliance. Internal restructuring efforts, dubbed “Project Transform,” are underway to streamline operations and reduce overhead costs, although associated costs will be recognized as exceptional items during the year.

The pace of new site openings remains constrained by resource-limited local planning processes. While Gleeson Homes opened nine new build sites since the start of FY2026, compared to eight in the prior year, the number of sites commencing sales decreased to seven from eleven in the same period last year. The company is currently selling on 53 sites, down from 65 a year earlier.

Gleeson Partnerships, a relatively new venture for the group, delivered its first homes during the period. The division reported strong interest from both private rental investors and housing associations, although funding delays under the Government's new settlement continue to pose a challenge.

Gleeson Land completed the sale of three sites during the period, with a further five sites in active sale processes. Demand for prime consented sites remains strong.

However, the timing of one significant sale, representing approximately 50% of the total plots forecast to be sold during the year, hinges on the final technical agreement of the highways design, introducing a degree of uncertainty.

The division has ramped up its planning activity, submitting 15 applications during the first half of the financial year, compared to just two in the same period last year.

The Group's net debt increased to £22.5 million as of December 31, 2025, compared to £18.1 million at the end of December 2024. This increase in net debt may warrant monitoring in future reports, as it could impact the company's financial flexibility.

CEO Graham Prothero stated, “We are pleased to have delivered a solid performance in a subdued market. We now expect to see an improvement in new home sales through the Spring selling season on the back of last month's rate cut, and as uncertainty in the run-up to the Budget continues to subside,” reinforcing the company’s positive outlook and proactive adaptation to market dynamics.