Taylor nudges down annual earnings forecast after budget uncertainty hit sales

Housebuilder Taylor Wimpey has lowered its annual earnings guidance after suffering a sales slowdown amid uncertainty ahead of last November’s budget.

The group saw shares fall as much as 6% in morning trading on Thursday after it said it now expects operating profit of around £420 million for 2025, which would be higher than the £416.2 million in 2024, but lower than the £424 million it guided for in November.

It said autumn budget uncertainty knocked sales in the final six months of last year, but also weighed on forward orders into 2026.

The group ended the year with an order book valued at £1.86 billion, down from £2 billion at the end of 2024.

This will impact its profitability over 2026, it said.

It comes after rival Vistry said on Wednesday that house sales dropped in 2025 after budget uncertainty led to a “more subdued market”.

Taylor said: “Uncertainty ahead of the late autumn budget impacted sales through the second half of 2025 and our order book coming into 2026.

“Whilst it is too early to predict the outcome of the spring selling season, we are experiencing a good level of inquiries consistent with last year.”

It added: “We expect group operating profit margin to be lower in 2026 than in 2025 and, given the lower opening order book, for performance to be more second half-weighted in 2026 than in prior years.”

Its full-year update showed it completed 10,614 UK homes last year, up from 9,972 in 2024 and in line with its forecasts.

Average selling prices on private homes rose to £374,000 from £356,000 the previous year, helping revenues rise to around £3.8 billion, from £3.4 billion in 2024.

Jennie Daly, chief executive of Taylor, said: “We delivered a robust performance during 2025 in the context of challenging market conditions.

“The Government’s planning reforms have been welcome, and we’ve seen increased momentum in our recent planning permissions.

“However, while affordability is slowly improving, demand continues to be muted – particularly among the important first-time buyer category – which will constrain overall sector output.”