Net earnings at homebuilder and lender D.R. Horton beat some consensus estimates in its fiscal third quarter ending June 30 at $146 million, or 42 cents per diluted share, but there were concerns about weakness in its volumes it attributed to relatively higher mortgage interest rates during the period.
This was up from $110 million in
During the third fiscal quarter of this year, Zacks found the builder beat its consensus per-share estimate of 35 cents, noting, “The earnings upsurge was driven by solid pricing and margin improvement which made up for soft volumes.”
Homebuilding revenue at $1.64 billion represented a 47% year-over-year quarterly increase, but Zacks said the company missed its consensus estimate of $1.75 billion in this category “due to soft new order growth.”
The increase in rates did give homebuyers reason to pause and slowed volume, Bill Wheat, executive vice president and chief financial officer, told listeners to the company’s earnings call.
But he described it as a “short-term impact” and said he believes people “will still buy a house.” He said the company has seen “normal summer seasonality” in its sales pace during the first three weeks of July.
Among the mortgage company data points Wheat highlighted for the fiscal period was an average FICO score for borrowers of 723, an average loan-to-value ratio of 90%, and figures showing more than half of its homes were financed through the unit. The company serves many first-time buyers.
