KB Home Sees Losses Quadruple from 2007

Los Angeles,CA, Sept. 26, 2008--KB Home said Friday its third-quarter loss quadrupled from a year-ago period.

KB Home's loss widened to $144.7 million, or $1.87 per share, from a loss of $35.6 million, or 46 cents per share, a year ago. But excluding gains from its divested French operations, year-ago losses totaled $478.6 million, or $6.19 per share.

Latest-quarter results included pretax charges of $82.2 million to write down inventory values.

Revenue for the period ended Aug. 31 fell by more than half to $681.6 million from $1.54 billion, as continued deterioration in new home demand and pricing, excessive inventories and less mortgage availability hurt sales across most markets.

KB Home saw a 51 percent drop in homes delivered during the quarter, with the average selling price down 10 percent.

"Market fundamentals appear unlikely to improve significantly in the near term, as foreclosures continue to rise, housing inventory overhang remains at historically high levels and mortgages have become more difficult to obtain," said Jeffrey Mezger, president and chief executive, in a statement.