Watkin Jones has announced it is on course to meet its full-year expectations after a stronger second half to the year.
For the year to 30 September 2025, the Build-to-Rent and student housing developer expects to report a revenue of around £280million, subject to audit, and adjusted operating profit in line with its forecasts.
A series of deals in the latter half of the year, including Watkin Jones’ PBSA joint venture with Maslow Capital in Glasgow and development partnerships for affordable homes in St Helens, an aparthotel in Southwark and student accommodation in Bristol, played major roles in the developer’s strong finish to the financial year.
Watkin Jones said that delivery had remained consistent, with the completion of around 600 student rooms in the second half of the year, with a further 1,900 rooms set to be completed over the next year.
The developer said that it had continued to make progress with its retrofit programme ‘Refresh’, with three projects currently underway and a growing pipeline of student and rental opportunities.
The group said that cash remained a key focus over the financial year, with net cash standing at around £70million as of 30 September 2025, down from £83million last year, although an additional £10million from the Glasgow deal was received just after the trading period.
Watkin Jones said that it had made progress with its building safety work requirements over the year. It completed remediation work on six buildings during the period and is continuing to review provisions as further investigations progress.
Looking forward, Watkin Jones acknowledged that market conditions remained challenging, but said that it entered the next financial year with a strong pipeline of opportunities.
The trading update said: “Looking ahead to the medium term, the end markets in which the Group operates remain attractive, supported by a structural shortage of rental and student properties and enduring investor appetite. We continue, therefore, to selectively add to our pipeline with good quality assets in undersupplied markets.”
