Vistry Group (LON: VTY), the UK housebuilder focused on mixed-tenure and affordable housing, saw its shares soar after Homes England, the government’s housing and regeneration agency, confirmed it as a Strategic Partner and awarded it £350m in direct grant funding.
Shares traded up 14.67% to 308.007p on the LSE earlier today, against a previous close of 268.6p, after opening sharply higher following the announcement. The stock remains well below its 52-week high of 746.4p and close to its 52-week low of 220p.
The RNS, released before the London open, confirmed Vistry as one of the Strategic Partners under the government’s new £39bn Social and Affordable Homes Programme (SAHP), with the £350m grant the largest single award possible in this phase. The funding is earmarked to deliver more than 3,000 affordable homes. Chief executive Adam Daniels said: “Vistry has received direct grant funding awards under successive affordable homes programmes for nearly twenty years, and this award reflects our established track record and commitment to delivering much needed affordable homes in collaboration with Homes England and our partner providers.”
The scale of the award stands out against Vistry’s history with the scheme. Its initial grant under the prior 2021-26 Affordable Homes Programme was £83m, rising to £278m in total funding across that programme’s six years and delivering more than 3,500 homes over that period. Today’s single £350m award already exceeds that six-year total, giving Vistry visibility on a large pipeline of state-backed, non-repayable funding for new building. The announcement noted that Vistry already operates in all of the referenced Mayoral Strategic Authorities and has relationships with 29 of the other 32 Strategic Partners named.
The scale of the market reaction reflects how far Vistry shares had fallen before today. Trading near multi-year lows amid a broader housebuilder de-rating, the stock had limited room to price in fresh good news, which helps explain why a single grant award produced a double-digit percentage move rather than a smaller uplift.
The grant locks in near-term revenue visibility for Vistry, even as the shares remain far below their 52-week high.