Housebuilder Redrow on Tuesday axed its dividend and ruled out land buying ahead of an expected sales drop due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
The FTSE 250 builder said trading was resilient in the first 12 weeks of the second half to March 20, with a strong order book. But it last week saw visitors to sites drop substantially, and cancellations rise as travel restrictions started to come in.
Redrow said: “As the government's escalating measures to contain the spread of the virus take effect, it is inevitable our sales rate will be seriously impaired over the coming weeks and build output will be significantly affected by labour and material shortages.”
The firm, led by John Tutte, has put a freeze on land purchases and cancelled its 10.5p dividend amounting to £37 million.
The payment had been due on April 9.
Redrow’s sites currently remain open with strict precautions in place including enhanced levels of cleaning, additional hygiene facilities and social distancing.
