Whitbread (LON:WTB) Stock Crosses Above 200-Day Moving Average - Should You Sell?

Whitbread plc (LON:WTB - Get Free Report)'s share price passed above its two hundred day moving average during trading on Thursday . The stock has a two hundred day moving average of GBX 2,737.79 ($36.87) and traded as high as GBX 2,780 ($37.44). Whitbread shares last traded at GBX 2,758 ($37.14), with a volume of 559,095 shares traded.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on WTB shares. Citigroup lowered their price objective on shares of Whitbread from GBX 3,700 ($49.82) to GBX 3,300 ($44.44) and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered shares of Whitbread to a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Finally, Shore Capital reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Whitbread in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of GBX 2,860 ($38.51).

Whitbread Trading Up 0.2%

The business has a 50-day moving average of GBX 2,740.87 and a 200 day moving average of GBX 2,737.79. The stock has a market cap of £4.93 billion, a PE ratio of 21.37, a PEG ratio of -3.09 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 33.18, a quick ratio of 1.74 and a current ratio of 0.96.

Whitbread (LON:WTB - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The company reported GBX 194.60 ($2.62) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Whitbread had a net margin of 8.08% and a return on equity of 6.83%. Equities research analysts predict that Whitbread plc will post 227.1851852 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Whitbread announced that its board has approved a stock buyback program on Thursday, May 1st that permits the company to repurchase 0 shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to repurchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are often a sign that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Dominic Paul sold 3,206 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of GBX 2,790 ($37.57), for a total transaction of £89,447.40 ($120,451.66). Also, insider Hemant Patel sold 2,607 shares of Whitbread stock in a transaction on Friday, May 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of GBX 2,790 ($37.57), for a total value of £72,735.30 ($97,946.81). 1.03% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.