Century Communities Raises Delivery Outlook as Orders Rebound
Net new-home contracts rose 10% sequentially to 2,615, reversing the prior quarter’s decline.
Century Communities (CCS), the home builder, reported an 11% increase in diluted earnings to $1.26 a share as lower charges and firmer margins offset weaker home-sales revenue.
The results marked a sequential recovery as deliveries exceeded guidance and orders returned to growth. Deliveries rose 25% from the first quarter to 2,506, while contracts increased 10% after declining sequentially in the prior period.
Total revenue rose 17.4% sequentially to $927.2 million and fell 7.3% from a year earlier. Home-sales revenue declined 8.1% to $897.5 million as deliveries fell 3.1% and the average delivery price dropped 5.1% to $358,200. Net income increased to $36.1 million from $34.9 million a year earlier.
Order growth varied across Century’s markets. Contracts rose 31.0% in the Mountain segment and 12.7% in Texas, while West and Century Complete recorded declines. Average selling prices fell in every segment, including decreases of 10.9% in Southeast and 8.5% in Mountain.
Margins continued to recover from their late-2024 lows. Adjusted homebuilding gross margin expanded 30 basis points sequentially to 20.0%, matching the year-earlier level, and GAAP homebuilding gross margin improved to 18.1%. Inventory impairment fell to zero from $7.4 million a year earlier, while abandonment and purchase-accounting charges also declined.
Century raised the low end of its full-year delivery outlook by 250 homes and now expects 9,750 to 10,500 deliveries, lifting the midpoint to 10,125. The company forecasts home-sales revenue of $3.5 billion to $3.8 billion.
The backlog grew sequentially to 1,264 homes valued at $469.3 million, though its average price fell 3.0% from a year earlier. Community count reached a record 330, with growth concentrated in Texas, where Century added 14 communities from the prior year.
Century repurchased $19.6 million of shares, down from $40.0 million in the first quarter, and maintained its quarterly dividend at $0.32 a share. Liquidity declined to $802.4 million as net homebuilding debt reached 31.9% of net capital, leaving the raised delivery outlook paired with higher leverage.