Comstock Homebuilding Reaffirms

The small-cap homebuilder insists that rate worries won't hurt it.
By TSC Staff ,

Comstock Homebuilding

(CHCI) - Get Report

reaffirmed 2005 and 2006 guidance after the small-cap homebuilder suffered a 12% selloff Monday.

The Reston, Va.-based company said it expects to post 2005 earnings of $2.15-$2.20 a share on revenue of $250 million-$260 million, and 2006 revenue 50%-60% above that. Those figures are in line with the Wall Street analyst estimates furnished by Thomson First Call.

"Our results for the first two months of 2005 are representative of the tremendous demand for new homes in our core market of the greater Washington, D.C., area," said CEO Christopher Clemente. "The driving forces of demand for new homes are job growth and population growth, not interest rates."

The comments came after the stock plunged $2.77 in regular action Monday to $21.91 as investors worried about the prospects for homebuilders as long-term interest rates rise.

Comstock said in its press release, issued after the market closed, that it generated 166 net new orders valued at $63.6 million for the first two months of 2005, and that its Feb. 28 backlog stood at 572 undelivered orders worth $225.7 million.

The company, which serves Raleigh, N.C., along with Washington, came public in December at $16 in an IPO that raised $63 million.

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