WH Smith PLC (LON:SMWH) Receives Consensus Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from Brokerages

Key Points

• Five brokerages give WH Smith a consensus recommendation of Moderate Buy (three Buy, two Hold) with an average 1‑year price target of GBX 868.60.
• Shares trade at GBX 578 (52‑week range GBX 555–1,132) while the company reported a negative quarterly EPS (GBX -14.20), negative net margin and ROE, and an extremely high debt‑to‑equity ratio (872.78), signaling financial stress.
• Insiders have been buying recently—Max Izzard bought 25,000 shares at GBX 675 and Helen Rose bought 7,972 at GBX 627—total insider purchases of 32,992 shares over 90 days, with insiders owning about 1.03% of the stock.

WH Smith PLC (LON:SMWH - Get Free Report) has received an average recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the five brokerages that are covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is GBX 868.60.

Several research analysts recently commented on the company. Peel Hunt reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a GBX 800 price target on shares of WH Smith in a research report on Friday, December 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on WH Smith from GBX 750 to GBX 800 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 2nd. Finally, Berenberg Bank dropped their target price on WH Smith from GBX 700 to GBX 667 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 19th.

WH Smith Stock Performance

Shares of LON:SMWH opened at GBX 578 on Thursday. WH Smith has a 52 week low of GBX 555 and a 52 week high of GBX 1,132. The stock has a market capitalization of £720.74 million, a P/E ratio of -5.10, a PEG ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 0.96. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of GBX 654.37 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of GBX 660.81. The company has a quick ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 0.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 872.78.

WH Smith (LON:SMWH - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Friday, December 19th. The company reported GBX (14.20) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. WH Smith had a negative net margin of 9.27% and a negative return on equity of 62.07%. On average, analysts expect that WH Smith will post 100.9372747 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Max Izzard purchased 25,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 29th. The stock was bought at an average cost of GBX 675 per share, for a total transaction of £168,750. Also, insider Helen Rose acquired 7,972 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 8th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of GBX 627 per share, with a total value of £49,984.44. Over the last 90 days, insiders purchased 32,992 shares of company stock valued at $21,886,244. 1.03% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

About WH Smith

WH Smith PLC operates as a retailer in the United Kingdom and internationally. It operates in two segments, Travel and High Street. The Travel segment offers news, books, and convenience for travelling customers. It operates stores in airports, hospitals, railway stations, and motorway service areas. The High Street segment sells stationery products, including greeting cards, general stationery, art and craft, and gifting products; news and impulse products, such as newspapers, magazines, confectionery, and drinks; and books.

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