By Investing.com — DR Horton Inc (NYSE:DHI) saw its shares slide more than 5% in premarket trading Tuesday after the home construction company missed Q4 estimates on top and bottom lines and issued weak guidance for fiscal 2025.
For the fourth quarter, the company posted earnings per share (EPS) of $3.92, short of analyst expectations at $4.18. Revenue came in at $10 billion, also below the consensus forecast of $10.21 billion.
Net sales orders totaled $7.15 billion, down 2.1% year-over-year and below the estimated $7.52 billion.
D.R. Horton reported a backlog of $4.77 billion, marking a 19% decline year-over-year and missing the $4.97 billion estimate.
For fiscal year 2025, D.R. Horton expects revenue between $36 billion and $37.5 billion, also below the analyst consensus of $39.41 billion.
“Despite continued affordability challenges and competitive market conditions, our net sales orders in the fourth quarter increased slightly from the prior year to 19,035 homes,” said David Auld, Executive Chairman of D.R. Horton.
“Our sales pace was in line with normal seasonality from the third to fourth quarter but was below our expectations. While mortgage rates have decreased from their highs earlier this year, many potential homebuyers expect rates to be lower in 2025. We believe that rate volatility and uncertainty are causing some buyers to stay on the sidelines in the near term.”
“To help spur demand and address affordability, we are continuing to use incentives such as mortgage rate buydowns, and we have continued to start and sell more of our homes with smaller floor plans.”