Hong Kong developers expected to report upbeat half-year results, lifted by project releases, soaring home prices

Hong Kong homebuilders are expected to report strong half-year and full-year earnings during the coming weeks as home prices continued to soar and sales of new flats climbed to a decade high.

Sun Hung Kai Properties (SHKP), Sino Land, CK Asset Holdings, Kerry Properties and Henderson Land Development are tipped to report gain in half-year and full-year earnings ranging from 19 per cent to 250 per cent, according to Morgan Stanley.

SHKP and New World Development are to report June-to-December results on Tuesday, while Sino Land will report on Wednesday.

“We expect developers to see a 13 per cent year on year earnings per share gain on average, mainly driven by growing sales volume and project completion,” said Praveen Choudhary, an equity analyst at Morgan Stanley, in a recent report.

SHKP is likely to announce a 20 per cent increase to HK$17.5 billion (US$2.24 billion) in interim core earnings for the six months to December 2017. New World Development ranks as the only exceptions, as its interim core profit is projected to tumble 41 per cent as a result of fewer project launches, according to the report.

Others developers are expected to release earnings in mid-March but have yet to finalise an announcement date.