Whitbread (LON:WTB) Shares Down 10.3% - What's Next?

Key Points

• Whitbread plc shares dropped by 10.3%, trading as low as GBX 2,876 ($38.55) on Thursday, significantly below its previous close of GBX 3,224 ($43.22).
• Despite the drop in share price, analysts maintain optimism with a mix of "buy" ratings, including a target price of GBX 3,500 from Peel Hunt and Citigroup raising their target from GBX 3,600 to GBX 3,800.
• Whitbread, owner of the UK's largest hotel chain Premier Inn, reported a net margin of 8.08% and a return on equity of 6.83% in its latest earnings results.

Shares of Whitbread plc (LON:WTB - Get Free Report) fell 10.3% on Thursday . The company traded as low as GBX 2,876 ($38.55) and last traded at GBX 2,893 ($38.78). 2,658,615 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 58% from the average session volume of 1,682,901 shares. The stock had previously closed at GBX 3,224 ($43.22).

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have weighed in on the stock. Peel Hunt restated a "buy" rating and issued a GBX 3,500 target price on shares of Whitbread in a research report on Thursday. Berenberg Bank cut their price target on Whitbread from GBX 3,900 to GBX 3,500 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. Shore Capital reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Whitbread in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price target on Whitbread from GBX 3,600 to GBX 3,800 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 21st. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of GBX 3,600.

Whitbread Stock Down 10.3%

The company has a current ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 1.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 33.18. The stock's 50-day moving average is GBX 3,152.79 and its 200-day moving average is GBX 2,921.34. The company has a market cap of £4.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 2,057.61, a P/E/G ratio of -3.09 and a beta of 1.11.

Whitbread (LON:WTB - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 16th. The company reported GBX 133.70 earnings per share for the quarter. Whitbread had a return on equity of 6.83% and a net margin of 8.08%. On average, analysts anticipate that Whitbread plc will post 227.1851852 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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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