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Legal & General Capital (LGC), which previously owned just 47.9% of CALA Homes, is now the sole owner of the housebuilder.
Parent firm Legal & General Group (L&G) announced today that its early-stage investment arm has snapped up the remaining 52.1% stake for £315 million – valuing CALA Homes at £605 million. The buyout involved major shareholder Patron Capital and the housebuilder’s management team.
“LGC operating profit increased by 6% to £272 million (2016: £257 million) driven by returns from the division’s £3.8 billion (2016: £3.8 billion) traded assets portfolio, and continued strong performance in the £1.5 billion (2016: £1.1 billion) direct investment portfolio which contributed £124 million (2016: £121 million),” noted L&G when it announced its full-year results last week. “This included £43 million from CALA Homes, representing our share of the business’s profit in 2017.”
CALA Homes, which posted over £700 million in revenues in the 12 months to the end of December, was LGC’s first direct investment and gave L&G an entry into the British housing market. The high-quality family housing provider delivered 1,677 total completions in 2017.
“Legal & General is delighted to assume full ownership of CALA Homes, a growing business which we know and understand well,” commented LGC chief executive Kerrigan Procter. “It has a strong management team with proven experience of managing a housebuilding business across business cycles, and has delivered great returns for shareholders since its acquisition in 2013, having tripled in revenue during this time. I am excited to be working with the team as CALA Homes continues to develop and grow under our continued ownership.”
For chief executive Alan Brown, today’s investment marks the start of another exciting new chapter for CALA Homes. Patron Capital managing director Keith Breslauer, meanwhile, is confident that the business will continue to thrive under L&G.
