Writedowns force Toll Brothers to 3Q loss

Source: Construction Digital

Date :9/4/2008 3:59:38 AM

Luxury homebuilder Toll Brothers has revealed its fourth straight quarterly loss as writedowns cut a whole in its third quarter results.

The company said that third quarter net income was US$26.5 million, or US$0.16 per share, including pre-tax write-downs totaling US$147.3 million.

After-tax write-downs totaled US$88.5 million, or $0.54 per share diluted. Excluding write-downs, FY 2007’s third-quarter earnings were $115.0 million, or $0.70 per share diluted.

Robert I. Toll, Chairman and CEO said: "We are now completing the third year of the worst housing market since we started in 1967. Weak consumer confidence has kept many potential buyers from taking advantage of the current buyers’ market.”

Moving forward, Toll Brothers stated that it expects to deliver between 850 and 1,050 new homes in the fourth quarter, which would see revenue fall again.

Despite these worrying figures, the company said that conditions were improving and that the number of cancellations was at it lowest point in two years.