D.R. Horton Fiscal Q4: Net Orders Fall 7%, Cancellations Hit 23% as Starts Cut 45% From Prior Quarter
D.R. Horton (NYSE: DHI), the largest U.S. homebuilder, on October 29 reported fiscal fourth-quarter results for the period ended September 30, 2026, as high mortgage rates weighed on demand. Net sales orders fell 7% year over year to 18,619 homes, order value dropped 9% to $6.6 billion, and the cancellation rate rose to 23% from 20% a year earlier.
The company closed 22,915 homes in the quarter, down 2%, and home sales revenue fell 2% to $8.4 billion. Net income attributable to D.R. Horton was $741.8 million, or $2.67 per diluted share, on consolidated revenue of about $9.4 billion. For the full fiscal year, the builder closed 84,202 homes, generated $33.0 billion in consolidated revenue and earned $2.9 billion, or $10.11 per diluted share, completing its 25th consecutive year as the nation's largest builder by volume.
Margins kept narrowing. Home sales gross margin fell to 19.5%, down 120 basis points from the prior quarter, including about 80 basis points of above-normal litigation costs. To align inventory with demand, the company cut quarterly starts 45% from the prior quarter to 13,100 homes, down 10% year over year, and ended the fiscal year with 28,200 homes in inventory, of which 17,700 were unsold.
Fiscal 2027 guidance came in lower: consolidated revenue of $30 billion to $32 billion, versus $33.0 billion in fiscal 2026, and 79,000 to 84,000 closings. For the first quarter of fiscal 2027, the company expects revenue of $5.9 billion to $6.4 billion, closings of 15,500 to 16,500 homes and a home sales gross margin of 18% to 18.5%, with elevated sales incentives expected to persist.
On the earnings call, management said a high-80% to low-90% share of buyers financing through the company's mortgage arm used a rate buydown, with buydown rates averaging about 1.5 percentage points below market rates. First-time buyers accounted for 63% of the homes its mortgage company financed in the quarter.
Source: D.R. Horton, Inc
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 美国郊区新建住宅社区航拍（Ohio州 Blacklick，2024年10月）。（Pi.1415926535 摄，CC BY-SA 4.0，经 Wikimedia Commons）
