Construction may not be the most stylish sector to invest in, but it’s fundamental for the future growth of the economy. You see construction everywhere — there’s always a new housing development, hospital or office block being built. Construction isn’t all hard hats and high vis jackets — it’s a very broad term that refers to every stage in the process, as well as the companies that provide materials or manufacture the tools required.
Construction stock |
Icon |
1-year performance (to Apr. '25) |
5-year performance (to Apr. '25) |
Link |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Galliford Try PLC (GFRD) |  |
47.92% | 164.81% | More info |
| Kier Group PLC (KIE) |  |
-1.37% | 90.88% | More info |
| Balfour Beatty plc (BBY) |  |
17.01% | 111.34% | More info |
| Ameresco (AMRC) |  |
-48.78% | -22.51% | More info |
| Barratt Redrow plc (BTRW) |  |
-9.65% | 4.40% | More info |
| The Berkeley Group Holdings plc (BKG) |  |
-26.96% | 8.66% | More info |
| Taylor Wimpey PLC (TW) |  |
-19.96% | -0.27% | More info |
| Persimmon PLC (PSN) |  |
-8.70% | -29.65% | More info |
| Vistry Group PLC (VTY) |  |
-52.48% | 24.33% | More info |
| Crest Nicholson Holdings plc (CRST) |  |
-10.25% | -3.83% | More info |
All investing should be regarded as longer term. The value of your investments can go up and down, and you may get back less than you invest. Past performance is no guarantee of future results. If you’re not sure which investments are right for you, please seek out a financial adviser. Capital at risk.
If you're interested in investing in the construction stocks industry, take a closer look at what companies in this industry do and how the stocks have historically performed. Keep in mind that positive past performance doesn't guarantee that a stock will continue to rise in the future.
Uxbridge's Galliford Try was formed in 2000 from the merger of – you guessed it – Galliford PLC and Try Group PLC. Oh to have been a fly on the wall in the meeting to decide on that new name. Until 2019 Galliford Try was a big UK home builder, but then it sold off its Linden Homes arm to Bovis Homes (now Vistry). So these days it's more about the commercial and industrial projects. That nifty roof on centre court at Wimbledon? That's one of theirs. Ditto the Museum of Liverpool, the Corby Cube, and the Queensferry Crossing. But in May 2024, just a few convenient weeks before a Labour landslide general election, the company announced it would be venturing back into the affordable housing space as part of its growth plan.
Galliford Try is listed on the London Stock Exchange (LSE), has a trailing 12-month revenue of around 1.9 billion and employs 4,198 staff.
Capital at risk
Kier Group is all about civil engineering – specialising in concrete things you drive on or through, or ride trains on or through (e.g. HS2). It had a pretty tough period between 2018 and 2021, and at times looked to be on the verge of collapse. Rival firm, Carillion, went into liquidation, and vulture-like hedge fund managers shorted Kier stock in anticipation that it might follow suit. When Kier announced a £264m rights issue (an exclusive opportunity for existing shareholders to buy more), its share price fell nearly a third, nobody wanted to take up the rights issue, and the shorting vultures started circling once again. But in 2021 it returned to profitability – enough so that by 2022 it was talking about acquisitions. Kier has been trying to reduce its debt and in January 2025 started buying back shares (typically a play to boost the remaining stock value and sharpen up the balance sheet).
Kier Group is listed on the London Stock Exchange (LSE), has a trailing 12-month revenue of around £4 billion and employs 11,083 staff.
Capital at risk
Balfour Beatty plc finances, designs, develops, builds, and maintains infrastructure in the United Kingdom, the United States, and internationally. It operates through three segments: Construction Services, Support Services, and Infrastructure Investments. The company constructs buildings, including commercial, healthcare, education, retail, and residential assets; and infrastructure assets comprising highways and railways, as well as other large-scale infrastructure assets, such as waste, water, and energy plants.
Balfour Beatty is listed on the London Stock Exchange (LSE) and has a trailing 12-month revenue of around £8.2 billion.
Capital at risk
Ameresco, Inc. provides energy solutions in the United States, Canada, and Europe. It operates through North America Regions, U. Federal, Renewable Fuels, Europe, and All Other segments. The company offers energy efficiency, infrastructure upgrades, energy security and resilience, asset sustainability, and renewable energy solutions for businesses and organizations. It also designs, develops, engineers, and installs projects that reduce the energy, as well as operations and maintenance (O&M) costs of its customers' facilities; and projects primarily include various measures customized for the facility and designed to enhance the efficiency of building systems, such as heating, ventilation, cooling, and lighting systems.
Ameresco is listed on the NYSE, has a trailing 12-month revenue of around £1.8 billion and employs 1,509 staff.
Capital at risk
FTSE 100 constituent, Barratt Redrow, was formed in 2024 when Barratt Developments acquired rival homebuilder, Redrow, for £2.5b. It was a good opportunity for a rebrand after numerous controversies levelled at Barratt Developments, including a Devon new build that sold for £275k despite being independently valued at £1 due to major defects, and CMA investigations into alleged mis-selling of houses on a leasehold basis and possible breaches of competition law. The company is based in Coalville, Leicestershire, and takes on projects across England, Wales and Scotland.
Barratt Redrow is listed on the London Stock Exchange (LSE), has a trailing 12-month revenue of around $4.6 billion and employs 6,270 staff.
Capital at risk
The Berkeley Group Holdings plc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the residential-led and mixed-use property development and ancillary activities in the United Kingdom. The company is also involved in land selling activities. It operates under the Berkeley, St Edward, St George, St James, St Joseph, and St William brand names. The Berkeley Group Holdings plc was founded in 1976 and is headquartered in Cobham, the United Kingdom.
The Berkeley Group is listed on the London Stock Exchange (LSE), has a trailing 12-month revenue of around £2.6 billion and employs 2,610 staff.
Capital at risk
Taylor Wimpey plc operates as a homebuilder company in the United Kingdom and Spain. The company builds and delivers various homes and communities. Taylor Wimpey plc was founded in 1880 and is based in High Wycombe, the United Kingdom.
Taylor Wimpey is listed on the London Stock Exchange (LSE), has a trailing 12-month revenue of around £3.4 billion and employs 4,458 staff.
Capital at risk
Persimmon Plc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a house builder in the United Kingdom. The company offers family housing under the Persimmon Homes brand name; housing under the Charles Church brand name; and social housing under the Westbury Partnerships brand name. It also provides broadband services under the FibreNest brand; and timber frame, insulated wall panels, and roof cassettes under the Space4 brand. In addition, the company offers concrete bricks under the Brickworks brand; and concrete roof tile under the Tileworks brand.
Persimmon is listed on the London Stock Exchange (LSE), has a trailing 12-month revenue of around £3.2 billion and employs 4,731 staff.
Capital at risk
Vistry Group PLC, together with its subsidiaries, provides housing solutions in the United Kingdom. It offers o single family housing model. The company was formerly known as Bovis Homes Group PLC and changed its name to Vistry Group PLC in January 2020. Vistry Group PLC was founded in 1885 and is headquartered in West Malling, the United Kingdom.
Vistry Group is listed on the London Stock Exchange (LSE) and has a trailing 12-month revenue of around £3.8 billion.
Capital at risk
Crest Nicholson Holdings plc engages in building residential homes in the United Kingdom. It develops and sells apartments, houses, and commercial properties. The company was founded in 1963 and is headquartered in Addlestone, the United Kingdom.
Crest Nicholson is listed on the London Stock Exchange (LSE), has a trailing 12-month revenue of around £618.2 million and employs 704 staff.
Capital at risk
Investing in construction isn’t just about the physical build – you can invest in companies that manufacture machinery used in construction, as well as material suppliers — those bricks have to come from somewhere! You can also invest in companies that design and build residential homes from start to finish.
With so many cogs in place, construction is a well-oiled machine and tends to perform quite well, but not consistently. You need to make sure that you’re aware of the risks involved, such as the upfront costs and the risks of poor workmanship, as well as the fact that it’s a cyclical stock.
Construction markets are widely considered to be cyclical, so they’re not on constant upward trends and instead move in a cycle. As the economy grows, construction has a boom, but the reverse is also true.
Cyclical stocks are ones that tend to do well when people are spending money on “wants”, as well as needs. This tends to be at the early to mid stages of the economic cycle.
If you’re considering adding some construction stocks to your portfolio, make sure that you’ve done your research and know which stage in the economic cycle the sector is currently sitting in — this will help you manage your expectations for profits and dividends. Look into the projects that the companies are working on and look into their timescales, whether they’re in debt and if they pay dividends.
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