Hovnanian Enterprises Announces 13% Increase in Dollar Value of Net
Contracts and 50% Increase in the Dollar Value of Contract Backlog for
the First Quarter
PRNewswire-FirstCall
Thursday February 3, 2005
RED BANK, N.J., Feb. 3 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ — Hovnanian Enterprises,
Inc., a leading national homebuilder, announced today preliminary net
contracts and sales backlog for the first quarter and month ended
January 31, 2005. For the first quarter of fiscal 2005, the dollar value
of net contracts, including unconsolidated joint ventures, increased
13.0%, and the number of net contracts increased 0.5%, when compared to
the same period a year ago. The sales value of contract backlog at
January 31, 2005, including unconsolidated joint ventures, increased
50.3% on a year-over-year basis, and the number of homes in contract
backlog increased 19.1%, when compared to the first quarter of fiscal 2004.
For the month of January 2005, the dollar value of net contracts,
including unconsolidated joint ventures, increased 11.3%, while the
number of contracts increased 0.3%, when compared with January 2004. The
Company experienced a decline in the number of net contracts in the West
for the month and the quarter. This decline was primarily due to the
severe wet weather in California in January, which impacted traffic and
sales. The Company also experienced a decline in net contracts in the
Northeast for the month and the quarter, due entirely to a decline in
net contracts in the Company’s on-your- lot operations in Ohio.
The Company delivered 3,266 homes, excluding unconsolidated joint
ventures, an increase of 12.6%, during the 2005 first quarter, compared
with 2,901 homes delivered in last year’s first quarter. The number of
active selling communities company-wide on January 31, 2005 increased to
292 communities from 288 communities at the end of January 2004.
Hovnanian Enterprises, Inc. founded in 1959 by Kevork S. Hovnanian,
Chairman, is headquartered in Red Bank, New Jersey. The Company is one
of the nation’s largest homebuilders with operations in Arizona,
California, Delaware, Florida, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, Michigan,
Minnesota, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Texas,
Virginia and West Virginia. The Company’s homes are marketed and sold
under the trade names K. Hovnanian(R)Homes, Goodman Homes, Matzel &
Mumford, Diamond Homes, Westminster Homes, Forecast Homes, Parkside
Homes, Brighton Homes, Parkwood Builders, Great Western Homes and
Windward Homes. As the developer of K. Hovnanian’s Four Seasons
communities, the Company is also one of the nation’s largest builders of
active adult homes.
Additional information on Hovnanian Enterprises, Inc., including a
summary investment profile and the Company’s 2003 annual report, can be
accessed through the Investor Relations page of the Hovnanian website at
To be added to Hovnanian’s investor e-mail or fax
lists, please send an e-mail to [email protected] or sign up at
Source: Hovnanian Enterprises, Inc.