Pulte Homes posts loss for Q4

14 mins ago

The builder also reported increases in orders and completed sales for the quarter.

The results included $925 million in charges related to impairment of assets, the value of land, and its merger with rival Centex last year.

Revenue rose 5 percent to $1.73 billion from $1.64 billion. Revenue was helped by a 13 percent increase in completed sales, partly offset by a 7 percent decrease in the average selling price, to $258,000.

Orders for new homes ballooned, more than doubling to 3,748 from 1,763 a year earlier, as the company‘s latest quarter included results from Centex. Centex was acquired by Pulte last fall.

But many industry experts question how the shaky housing recovery will hold up once the tax credits — $8,000 for new buyers and $6,500 for current owners — expire at the end of April.

Still, the number of people preparing to buy a home in December rose slightly from November, a positive sign heading into the spring home buying season.

"Centex‘s land assets are proving to be an important resource in a market facing a limited supply of well-positioned homebuilding lots," said Richard J. Dugas, Pulte‘s president and CEO, in a statement.

Analysts expected a full-year loss of $3.73 a share.

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Pulte Homes: http://www.pulte.com/



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