SUNLAND POSTS HALF YEAR PROFIT $7.8 MILLION

GOLD Coast ASX-listed developer Sunland Group has posted a half year NPAT of $7.8 million as it careers toward a FY11 full year profit guidance of $20 million.

While some settlements have been delayed due to ‘increment and unexpected weather’ in the Group’s key development regions of South East Queensland and Victoria, managing director Sahba Abedian (pictured) says the outlook is positive.

There is an expectation that further settlement timings on the housing projects could be delayed over the next six months, although solid cash-flow is still anticipated across the residential and land portfolio.

Abedian told Gold Coast Business News that further acquisitions are also afoot as opportunities arise in the residential house and land sector.

“There will be opportunities, but one has to be patient and the next six months our focus will be on the delivery of projects,” he says.

While the Group experienced solid sales in the first half of the year of 2010, there was a softening in activity in the December quarter.

Abedian says Sunland’s portfolio, which spans affordable to luxury residences in prime golf course and lifestyle precincts, ‘continues to meet the demands of the market’.

The Group enhanced its Melbourne (Victoria) portfolio with the $14m acquisition of two parcels of land for Residential Housing at University Hill and a residential housing site at Chirnside for $16m which settled in January 2011. Both projects will deliver a total of 320 dwellings.

Abedian says the first half performance demonstrated a simplified long-term strategy of returning to core house and land business, enabling it to deliver a positive profit position.

“Our marketshare has increased as many of our peers continue to leave the market and we are confident we can continue to create projects and infrastructure to regenerate interest in this city,” he says.

He says continued stringent capital management initiatives were fundamental to an ongoing focus to realign the business given the softened market environment.

The company has cash reserves of $57.8 million in cash and undrawn credit lines of $27.8 million.

Sunland is now half way through the third tranche of a successful buy-back scheme to acquire a further 49.5 million shares.

It’s Australian pipeline comprises 3404 products across 24 projects, with an end value of $1.4 billion.

No interim dividend was declared.

Sunland shares remained static today at 78c.

Read the full interview with Sunland managing director Sahba Abedian in the March edition of Gold Coast Business News, available in more than 450 newsagencies.