Miller makes it a golden dozen

Miller, the housebuilder and construction group, has unveiled its 12th successive year of increased profit.

Miller’s latest £76m pre-tax profit includes a three-and-a-half month contribution from Fairclough, the housebuilder that Miller bought for £264m last autumn.

The acquisition generated an exceptional gain of £11m, the result of the sale of various fixed assets.

Rationalisation charges ran to £14m, 20% lower than the figure Miller had anticipated. The overhead savings resulting from the merger are put at £15m a year.

There has been a shake-up of senior jobs and three of Miller’s nine housing divisions are now headed by a managing director who was formerly with Fairclough: Nick Smith (north-west England); Steve Birch (Yorkshire) and Richard Saraff (North Home Counties).

Financial results (12 months to 31 December 2005) show Miller’s turnover at £890m (2004 figure: £750m) with the latest pre-tax profit running £22m higher.

Operating margins in Miller’s housebuilding division increased slightly to 16%. The average selling price of £185,000 represents a 6% rise.

In Miller’s construction division, a margin of 2.4% was achieved as turnover of £250m generated a profit before interest of £6m.