Legal & General Capital has acquired the remaining stake it did not already own in UK housebuilder Cala Homes in a deal that values the company at £605 mln (€681 mln).
The company has spent £315 mln to buy the 52.1% stake it did not own, adding that Cala had grown its revenues threefold from £241 mln in 2013 to £748 mln in 2017.
L&G took a 46.5% stake in Cala back in 2013. It has now bought out its fellow major shareholder, property investor Patron Capital.
L&G said it believes that 'Cala Homes has attractive growth prospects under its continued ownership based on its long-term approach to investing and the attractive market for housebuilding in the UK'.
In 2017 L&G reported operating profit before tax of £42.5 mln for its 47.88% stake in Cala Homes.
Kerrigan Procter, Chief Executive Officer of Legal & General Capital, said: 'Legal & General is delighted to assume full ownership of Cala Homes, a growing business which we know and understand well. 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.'
Alan Brown, Chief Executive of Cala Homes, commented: 'Today’s investment by Legal & General marks the start of another exciting new chapter for Cala Homes and is a fantastic endorsement of our growth potential from one of the UK’s most highly-respected, blue-chip investors who shares our long-term vision.'
'Over the last five years, Cala Homes has expanded significantly, growing twofold the annual volume of homes sold and fourfold the operating profits, delivering on the business plan set out at the time of Patron and Legal & General’s acquisition,' added Keith Breslauer, managing director of Patron Capital.
