Leading national homebuilder Hovnanian Enterprises (HOV -1.51%) reported its fourth-quarter and full-year 2013 results before the market opened today. Revenue was up 21.5% over the prior year's fourth quarter to $591.7 million. Net income was also up over the prior year's fourth quarter as Hovnanian delivered earnings of $32.8 million, or $0.21 per share, which compared to a loss of $84.4 million, or $0.59 per share. Earnings handily beat analysts' expectations of $0.17 per share.
For the full year Hovnanian delivered revenue of $1.85 billion, which was 24.2% higher than the prior year. Full-year net income of $31.3 million was also higher than the previous year, which saw Hovnanian lose $66.2 million. While the company endured a midsummer sales slowdown due to rising interest rates it was able to make up for it later in the year.
Contributing to the rising revenue and income was an increase in homes delivered. Hovnanian delivered 1,816 homes during the fourth quarter, up 3.8% from last year's fourth quarter. For the full year the company delivered 5,930 homes, which was 10.7% more than 2012.
Looking ahead, Hovnanian's total contract backlog stands at $848.4 million for 2,393 homes. Both are up over the prior year by 7.8% and 11.5%, respectively. CEO Ara Hovnanian noted in the company's press release that entering 2014 with a higher backlog has the company optimistic it should see greater profitability in the year ahead. He believes that the industry is still in the early stages of a housing recovery.
