Jefferies Financial Group Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Whitbread (LON:WTB) Stock

Key Points

• Jefferies raised Whitbread’s price target from GBX 2,050 to GBX 2,250 but maintained a “hold” rating, implying roughly 10.36% downside from the prior close.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed but leans positive: Whitbread has a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating and an average price target of GBX 2,970.56, based on five Buy and four Hold ratings.
• Whitbread shares opened at GBX 2,510, up 1.4%, while insiders recently purchased shares; insiders own 0.42% of the company.

Whitbread (LON:WTB - Get Free Report) had its price target hoisted by equities researchers at Jefferies Financial Group from GBX 2,050 to GBX 2,250 in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday,Digital Look reports. The brokerage currently has a "hold" rating on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group's price target points to a potential downside of 10.36% from the company's previous close.

WTB has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their price target on Whitbread from GBX 2,815 to GBX 2,530 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Citigroup upped their target price on Whitbread from GBX 3,100 to GBX 3,300 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, August 21st. Berenberg Bank reissued a "hold" rating and set a GBX 2,280 target price on shares of Whitbread in a report on Monday, June 22nd. UBS Group restated a "buy" rating and issued a GBX 2,975 price target on shares of Whitbread in a research report on Friday, June 12th. Finally, Shore Capital Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a GBX 3,700 price target on shares of Whitbread in a research note on Thursday, June 18th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of GBX 2,970.56.

Whitbread Stock Up 1.4%

Shares of WTB opened at GBX 2,510 on Wednesday. Whitbread has a 12 month low of GBX 2,098 and a 12 month high of GBX 3,302. The firm's 50 day moving average is GBX 2,435.95 and its 200-day moving average is GBX 2,440.88. The stock has a market capitalization of £4.20 billion, a PE ratio of 20.51, a P/E/G ratio of -3.09 and a beta of 0.65. The company has a current ratio of 0.44, a quick ratio of 1.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 174.28.

Insider Activity at Whitbread

In other Whitbread news, insider Shelley Roberts bought 485 shares of Whitbread stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 11th. The shares were purchased at an average price of GBX 2,456 per share, with a total value of £11,911.60. Also, insider Dominic Paul bought 717 shares of Whitbread stock in a transaction on Friday, July 3rd. The stock was acquired at an average cost of GBX 2,410 per share, for a total transaction of £17,279.70. 0.42% of the stock is owned by insiders.

About Whitbread

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.

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