Harworth Group said it was on track to achieve its ambition of becoming a £1bn business by the end of 2027 after posting strong financial results for the 12 months ended 31 December 2023.
The company saw its operating profit increase from £44.5m to £54.2m and its net asset value grew from £602.7m to £637.7m in the reporting period.
Lynda Shillaw, chief executive of Harworth, said: “Harworth once again delivered another strong performance in 2023, ahead of the MSCI All Property Index and resulting in one of the sector’s leading total returns, while maintaining a low loan-to-value of just 4.7% and significant financial liquidity. We continue to benefit from the unique combination of our extensive land bank and the application of our specialist skillset to develop new market opportunities and realise the highest value from each of our sites.
“This saw us complete serviced land and property sales at prices broadly in line with book values before transaction costs, achieve lettings ahead of estimated rental values, and progress some exciting acquisitions as we build our future pipeline and continue to move sites through the planning system.
“Since 2015, Harworth has undergone a transformation as a business whilst doubling its EPRA NDV. The progress made across our portfolio in 2023 underpinned a 4.4% increase in our EPRA NDV, to £663m, and we remain confident of achieving our strategic ambition of becoming a £1bn business by the end of 2027. I am delighted with the performance of the business over the year, which was a tough one against a continued challenging macroeconomic backdrop, ongoing structural changes in parts of the market and domestic political uncertainty.”
Shillaw added that macroeconomic conditions remain challenging in 2024, but there are signs of optimism.
“Our key markets remain characterised by structural undersupply and we are seeing good demand for our serviced residential land as well as high levels of occupier interest in our employment sites,” she said.
“We have a self-propelled growth strategy driven by our land bank and the skills of our people, and our long-term through-the-cycle approach means that, as well as securing and progressing opportunities to deliver long-term value to investors, we are well positioned to take the management actions that will generate further value gains from our portfolio in the year ahead.”
