Homebuilder Beazer Homes earns $48 million in fiscal 1st quarter on generous tax gain

Beazer Homes posts a $48 million profit for Q1

Homebuyers spurred by low interest rates and government incentives helped lift Beazer Homes USA Inc.’s sales in the last three months of 2009, but the builder only turned a profit because of a hefty tax gain.

Management said Friday it expects to reel in more home shoppers this year, but stopped short of forecasting a profitable year.

“We want to see how the market comes out,” said Ian McCarthy, Beazer’s president and CEO.

Like other builders, the Atlanta-based company saw orders pick up last summer thanks to low mortgage rates and a tax credit for homebuyers.

But many industry experts question whether the fragile housing recovery will sputter once the tax credits — $8,000 for new buyers and $6,500 for current owners — expire at the end of April.

McCarthy argued sales may not necessarily slow at that point if home prices remain stable and unemployment declines.

“Having said that, we are planning for a softer second half of the year, but hoping for something better,” McCarthy said.

For now, however, Beazer is benefiting from a surge in business that hasn’t let up.

“Momentum has continued in January, so that is very, very positive,” he said.

Beazer earned $48 million, or $1.17 a share, in its fiscal first quarter ended in December. That compares with a loss of $80.3 million, or $2.08 a share, in the prior-year period.

The builder booked a $101 million tax gain.

Revenue was flat at $218.8 million versus $218.2 million.

Without accounting for the tax gain, analysts polled by Thomson Reuters were expecting a loss of 90 cents a share on revenue of about $200.6 million.

Investors initially sent the builder’s shares about 6 percent higher, but gain didn’t last. Shares fell 3 cents to $4.08 in afternoon trading.

Beazer, which caters primarily to first-time homebuyers, is headquartered in Atlanta and has operations in 16 states, with many communities along the Southeast, Mid-Atlantic and Southwest.

The company said orders for new homes increased almost 37 percent compared to year-ago levels. Completed sales also rose 8 percent from the same period a year earlier. And the number of buyers who backed out of contracts dropped to 27 percent from 46 percent a year ago, a sign shoppers are increasingly confident.

The builder has focused on offering more energy efficient homes. It also has geared up to buy more land this year.

Beazer said it modestly increased construction this quarter in anticipation of more sales in the spring. The move isn’t without risk.

The builder still owns a large number of unsold homes that have lost roughly half their value, said Joel Locker, an analyst with FBN Securities.

“They’re out of the woods if home prices don’t fall again,” Locker said.

The company is one of several builders to report a quarterly profit thanks to a tax gain and a surge in home orders to close out 2009.

D.R. Horton Inc., Ryland Group Inc. and Meritage Homes Corp. each reported quarterly profits and a jump in new home orders.

On the Net:

Beazer Homes USA: www.beazer.com/