External Growth | Homes Sweet Homes

News of a merger between two of the UK's largest housebuilders!

The Guardian reports here on the agreed merger between two leading housebuilders.

Vistry (formerly Bovis Homes) has a market capitalisation of £1.6bn and built (i.e. completed) 6,500 houses in 2021.

Countryside has a market capitalisation of £1.1bn and built 5,400 houses in 2021.

So the combined (i.e. merged) business will be building around 12,000 houses per year.

The key word "synergies" makes an appearance in the article. The new business is looking to achieve £50m of annual synergies - presumably most of these cost synergies.

This would make the newly merged business the 4th largest housebuilder where market share is determined by number of houses built.

Currently the top ten (number of houses built in last year) are

Barratt Developments (17,243)
Persimmon (13,575)
Bellway Plc (10,138)
Taylor Wimpey (9,609)
Berkeley Group (2,825)
Redrow Group (5,620)
Vistry Group (6,131)
Bloor Homes (3,548)
Countryside (4,053)
Cala Group (1,835)