Rotherham-based land developer Harworth Group plc reported record revenue of £181.6 million for 2024 and total property sales of £215.8 million.
Harworth concluded a £106.6 million land sale to Microsoft, of which £47.9 million was recognised during 2024, completed the sale of a strategic land site for £53.5 million to Frasers Group, and reported record residential plot sales of 2,385 at headline sales value of £104.1 million.
Total dividend per share rose 10% to 1.614p.
Harworth CEO Lynda Shillaw said: “Harworth delivered record revenue and land sales in 2024, generating significant value gains, with EPRA NDV up 8.5% year on year.
“Our strong total accounting return of 9.1% is yet again among the best in the sector and the result of management actions, consistent with our focus on driving value as we continue to progress our sites through development.
“This included two landmark land sales, to Microsoft for a hyperscale data centre and Frasers Group for their global headquarters, alongside record residential plot sales. Our performance continues to demonstrate the resilience of our through-the-cycle business model and highlights our ability to capitalise on emerging sectors, such as data centres, to accelerate our sites.
“The last four years of investment in strengthening our business to enable growth is bearing fruit and the business is performing across the board.
“While we remain cautious in light of the current macro-economic backdrop, our financial flexibility and careful capital allocation, and alignment to structurally undersupplied sectors fundamental to the UK’s growth, mean we are well placed to navigate uncertainty.
“Our consented pipeline and land bank and our ability to deliver at scale are significant strengths against a backdrop of site scarcity in our regions, and a planning system that remains sluggish as the reforms introduced by the government bed in.
“With a significant number of our sites coming on line for development, we are well positioned to continue to deliver strong returns, creating long-term value for our investors as we recycle capital to unlock the material underlying value of our land bank and increase the development of modern Grade A Industrial & Logistics assets.
“All of these actions provide the foundations for achieving our targets of £1bn of EPRA NDV by the end of 2027 and growing our core Investment Portfolio to £0.9bn by the end of 2029.”