Whitbread (LON:WTB) Announces Quarterly Earnings Results

Whitbread (LON:WTB) released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday. The company reported GBX 125.10 earnings per share for the quarter, Digital Look Earnings reports. Whitbread had a return on equity of 1.85% and a net margin of 1.96%.

Here are the key takeaways from Whitbread’s conference call:

• Strong trading momentum continued: UK accommodation sales rose 3% in H1, with current trading up 4.5% and RevPAR up 3.2%, while Germany delivered double-digit H1 accommodation sales growth and current RevPAR growth of 10%.
• Whitbread reported £39 million of efficiencies in H1, keeping UK operating costs flat despite inflation and higher business rates; management remains confident of achieving its £60 million full-year target.
• The company reiterated its full-year outlook and five-year plan, targeting higher margins, cash flow and returns through the Accelerating Growth Plan, selective room expansion and investment projects expected to generate at least 15% returns.
• Whitbread remains confident of delivering £450 million–£500 million of disposal proceeds, but acknowledged elevated gilt yields and said it would not complete transactions unless they offered an appropriate balance of shareholder value.
• Management urged shareholders to reject Corvex’s board nominee, arguing that an activist-led strategic review would distract from execution; cost pressures also remain, with AGP-related disruption and lease costs expected to be more heavily weighted toward the second half.

Whitbread Trading Up 2.4%

LON:WTB traded up GBX 60 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting GBX 2,600. 46,216,621 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 12,242,553. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of GBX 2,419.64 and a 200-day simple moving average of GBX 2,405.04. The company has a current ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 1.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 179.41. Whitbread has a fifty-two week low of GBX 2,098 and a fifty-two week high of GBX 3,175. The firm has a market capitalization of £4.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.24, a PEG ratio of -3.09 and a beta of 0.65.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Whitbread news, insider Shelley Roberts purchased 485 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 11th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of GBX 2,456 per share, for a total transaction of £11,911.60. 0.42% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WTB has been the subject of a number of research reports. Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on shares of Whitbread from GBX 2,050 to GBX 2,250 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 26th. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Whitbread from GBX 3,100 to GBX 3,300 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 21st. Shore Capital Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a GBX 3,700 price target on shares of Whitbread in a report on Thursday, June 18th. Finally, Berenberg Bank reiterated a “hold” rating and set a GBX 2,280 price objective on shares of Whitbread in a research report on Monday, June 22nd. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of GBX 2,970.56.

Whitbread Company Profile

Whitbread is the owner of Premier Inn, the UK’s biggest
hotel brand, with 86,000 rooms in over 850 hotels
and a growing presence in Germany with 10,500 rooms in
59 hotels, offering quality accommodation at affordable
prices in great locations.

People are at the heart of our business. We employ over
38,000 team members in over 900 Premier Inn hotels
across the UK and Germany.