Business - New York Pulte pares 1Q loss and now expects profit in 2010

NEW YORK (AP) -- PulteGroup Inc., the largest U.S. homebuilder, said Wednesday it slashed its loss in the first quarter as it took smaller charges for inventory impairments. PulteGroup said home sales rose 77 percent from a year ago while orders increased 43 percent, and the company now expects to turn a profit this year if business conditions remain stable. The Bloomfield Hills, Mich., company cut its first-quarter loss to $12.5 million, or 3 cents per share, from $514.8 million, or $2.02 per share, a year earlier. Revenue rose 75 percent, to $1.02 billion from $583.9 million. The latest quarter includes results from Centex Corp., which was acquired last fall. Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected a loss of 22 cents per share and $1.18 billion in revenue. PulteGroup's results included charges of $8 million related to inventory impairments. A year earlier, charges amounted to $410 million. Homebuilders have reported strong improvements due to federal tax credits for home buyers, low mortgage rates, and lower home prices. Competitors Beazer Homes and D.R. Horton both turned a profit in their latest fiscal quarters and said new home orders surged. PulteGroup said its business is stable compared with late 2009, and said it will be able to report a profit if those trends continue. However, the federal tax credits that helped boost home sales expired on April 30, and many industry experts question whether the fragile housing recovery will sputter as a result. The industry faces other challenges, including rising foreclosures, high unemployment, weak consumer confidence and tight lending standards. Analysts had expected Pulte to lose $143 million, or 43 cents per share, for the year. As the housing crisis intensified, the company lost $1.18 billion last year and $1.47 billion in 2008. Pulte Homes Inc. acquired Centex last fall, acquiring more communities with cheaply priced homes. In April, the company changed its name to PulteGroup as part of a new branding strategy. The company now has operations in 29 states and its Del Webb brand is the nation's largest builder of communities for adults age 55 and over. Published: Thu, May 6, 2010

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