CALABASAS, Calif., May 24 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- The Ryland Group, Inc. , today announced 2006 second-quarter home sales currently 35 percent lower than the prior year. The Company revised its 2006 earnings guidance and anticipates diluted earnings per share for the fiscal year ending Dec. 31, 2006, to be between $8.50 and $9.00 based on closing approximately 16,500 to 17,000 homes with gross profit margins of 23.2 percent. The Company projects 2006 second-quarter diluted earnings per share to be between $1.95 and $2.00 based on expected second-quarter closings.
Ryland repurchased 2.2 million shares of its common stock year to date at a cost of approximately $145.0 million.
With headquarters in Southern California, Ryland is one of the nation's largest homebuilders and a leading mortgage-finance company. The Company currently operates in 28 markets across the country and has built more than 250,000 homes and financed more than 215,000 mortgages since its founding in 1967. Ryland is a Fortune 500 company listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol "RYL." Previous news releases may be obtained at http://www.ryland.com/.
Note: Certain statements in this press release may be regarded as "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, and may qualify for the safe harbor provided for in Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. These forward-looking statements represent the Company's expectations and beliefs concerning future events, and no assurance can be given that the future results described in this press release will be achieved. These forward-looking statements can generally be identified by the use of statements that include words such as "anticipate," "believe," "estimate," "expect," "foresee," "goal," "intend," "likely," "may," "plan," "project," "should," "target," "will" or other similar words or phrases. All forward-looking statements contained herein are based upon information available to the Company on the date of this press release. Except as may be required under applicable law, the Company does not undertake any obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise.
These forward-looking statements are subject to risks, uncertainties and other factors, many of which are outside of the Company's control, that could cause actual results to differ materially from the results discussed in the forward-looking statements. The factors and assumptions upon which any forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties which include, among others:
* economic changes nationally or in the Company's local markets,
including volatility in interest rates, inflation, changes in consumer
confidence levels and the state of the market for homes in general;
* the availability and cost of land;
* increased land development costs on projects under development;
* shortages of skilled labor or raw materials used in the production of
houses;
* increased prices for labor, land and raw materials used in the
production of houses;
* increased competition;
* failure to anticipate or react to changing consumer preferences in home
design;
* increased costs and delays in land development or home construction
resulting from adverse weather conditions;
* potential delays or increased costs in obtaining necessary permits as a
result of changes to laws, regulations, or governmental policies
(including those that affect zoning, density, building standards and
the environment);
* delays in obtaining approvals from applicable regulatory agencies and
others in connection with the Company's communities and land
activities;
* the risk factors set forth in the Company's most recent Annual Report
on Form 10-K; and
* other factors over which the Company has little or no control.
