D.R. Horton, Inc., one of the nation’s major homebuilders reported a steep drop in quarterly profits for the 3 months ending September 30 — to $277.7 million. Profit for the fiscal year ending September 30 exceeded $1.2 billion, and the company’s net worth at year-end stood at a record of nearly $6.5 billion.
Don Tomnitz, Fort Worth-based Horton’s CEO, told a group of securities analysts, as reported by the Dallas Morning News via BuilderOnline, “I’d say we are in the early stages of a declining market. Most of these downturns are longer and deeper than we envision at the beginning.” Tomnitz predicted that calendar year 2007 will be “more challenging” than the past three quarters.
The company’s Northeast region, which includes its Cambridge Homes / Illinois operations, experienced relatively smaller declines in sales compared to its other regions.