Whitbread (LON:WTB) Releases Quarterly Earnings Results

Whitbread (LON:WTB - Get Free Report) released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday. The company reported GBX 194.60 ($2.60) EPS for the quarter, Digital Look Earnings reports. Whitbread had a net margin of 8.08% and a return on equity of 6.83%.

Whitbread Stock Performance

WTB traded up GBX 7 ($0.09) during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching GBX 2,740 ($36.59). The company had a trading volume of 579,810 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,642,878. The business has a 50-day moving average of GBX 2,534.45 and a two-hundred day moving average of GBX 2,789.89. The company has a quick ratio of 1.74, a current ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 33.18. Whitbread has a 1 year low of GBX 2,253 ($30.08) and a 1 year high of GBX 3,352 ($44.76). The company has a market cap of £4.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.19, a P/E/G ratio of -3.09 and a beta of 1.11.

Insider Activity at Whitbread

In other Whitbread news, insider Kal Atwal purchased 1,130 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 20th. The stock was acquired at an average price of GBX 2,621 ($35.00) per share, for a total transaction of £29,617.30 ($39,547.74). 1.03% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WTB has been the subject of several recent research reports. Citigroup reduced their price target on Whitbread from GBX 3,700 ($49.41) to GBX 3,300 ($44.06) and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered Whitbread to a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. Finally, Shore Capital restated a "buy" rating on shares of Whitbread in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of GBX 2,860 ($38.19).

Whitbread declared that its board has authorized a stock buyback plan on Thursday, May 1st that authorizes the company to buyback 0 outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to repurchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are usually a sign that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

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.