The result reflects a stark turnaround for the Dale Alcock-led builder, representing an $85.8m recovery since 2022.
ABN Group has posted a $43.3 million profit for the 2024 financial year, representing a $35.8 million improvement on last financial year and an $85.8 million increase in the past two years.
The results reflect a significant comeback for the Dale Alcock-led builder, with the company posting a $42.5 million loss in the year to June 2022.
The group showed signs of recovery last year, when it posted a $7.5 million profit.
Speaking to Business News, ABN Group chief executive Andrew Roberts attributed the strong result to improvements in productivity, customer service and cost management.
The company has managed to reduce its build times to pre-COVID levels in Victoria, and close to that in Western Australia.
“In WA, our single storey build times have come in from well over a year back to under a year, to 48 weeks,” Mr Roberts said.
ABN Group managing director Dale Alcock explained that labour supply remained the key issue in WA, which had a direct impact on build times.
“The reason that that hasn’t sprung back to the same level as Victoria is clearly the labor demands here more intense than Victoria,” he said.
ABN Group’s earnings before interest, tax and depreciation in FY24 were $95.1 million, from $31 million in the prior corresponding period.
It brought in $1.7 billion in revenue, from $1.4 billion last year.
The company’s cash reserves have lifted by almost 150 per cent, from $68.1 million in FY23 to $169.8 million in the recent financial year.
ABN says it cash reserves sit at about 80 per cent of that now, given the last day of the financial year fell before several bill payments were due.
ABN Group’s working capital, or net current assets, has increased from $67.7 million to $92.1 million.
It repaid $20 million of borrowings in FY24, which put it in a debt free position as of June 30 2024.
ABN Group invested close to $12 million on improvements to the business, mainly via software upgrades to improve the efficiencies of its sales process and on-site delivery.
Mr Roberts said the company expected to be in a strong position next year, however the following year looked more challenging.
He said land constraints and labour supply would impact the business in the next 24 months.
“We’re very well set up for FY 25 and then the current work we're doing is, how do we, how do we ensure we fill the gap for FY 26 that's our work over the next six months,” he said.
ABN Group ranked second in WA on the Housing Industry Association’s top 100 list of builders this year, with 1,837 home starts.
ABN recorded 3,881 home starts in WA and Victoria in 2023-24, placing it second nationally.
Speaking to Business News for a recent residential builders feature, Mr Alcock said the company would increase its volume of WA builds slightly next year while reducing its work in Victoria.
