Stockland say it's on track to meet its forecast for underlying earnings per share growth of between 6 to 7.5 per cent this financial year after a "robust" first quarter.
Australia's largest listed residential developer said 1557 net deposits in the quarter had it on track to achieve its target of around 6000 residential settlements for the fiscal year.
“This result provides a high level of confidence for our earnings outlook this financial year and confirms that the markets where we operate remain healthy, underpinned by 73 per cent owner occupier demand,” chief executive officer Mark Steinert said.
Stockland in August posted a net profit of $903 million, a 71.4 per cent increase on the previous year's $527m. Underlying earnings per share had come in at 25.9c, a 7.8 per cent increase over the year.
The company today said real estate markets in Sydney and Melbourne would continue to moderate, with improvement elsewhere.
“In line with our previous commentary, we expect markets in Sydney and inner Melbourne will moderate with a more normalised level of growth. Brisbane is showing improvement, Melbourne growth corridors remain sound and Perth has continued to slow as anticipated," Mr Steinert said.
“We remain confident we are well placed for these conditions and will continue to capitalise on strong demand for our differentiated and affordable offerings."
At 11.09am (AEDT), Stockland shares were up 1.01 per cent to $4 against a benchmark rise of 0.37 per cent.