Whitbread (LON:WTB) Stock Price Down 10.3% - Here's Why

Key Points

• Whitbread's stock price dropped 10.3% during mid-day trading, closing at GBX 2,893 ($38.89), significantly lower than its previous close of GBX 3,224 ($43.34).
• Analysts have mostly maintained a buy rating on Whitbread, with price targets ranging from GBX 3,500 to GBX 3,800, indicating potential for recovery despite the recent decline.
• The company reported a quarterly EPS of GBX 133.70 and has a market cap of £4.99 billion, highlighting its substantial presence in the hotel industry with over 86,000 rooms across the UK and Germany.

Whitbread plc (LON:WTB - Get Free Report)'s share price dropped 10.3% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as low as GBX 2,876 ($38.66) and last traded at GBX 2,893 ($38.89). Approximately 2,658,615 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 58% from the average daily volume of 1,682,901 shares. The stock had previously closed at GBX 3,224 ($43.34).

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Berenberg Bank reduced their price objective 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 reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Whitbread in a research note on Thursday. Peel Hunt reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a GBX 3,500 price objective on shares of Whitbread in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Whitbread from GBX 3,600 to GBX 3,800 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report 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 MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of GBX 3,600.

Whitbread Stock Performance

The firm has a market cap of £4.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 2,057.61, a P/E/G ratio of -3.09 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a quick ratio of 1.74, a current ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 33.18. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of GBX 3,149.81 and a 200-day simple moving average of GBX 2,924.40.

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

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.

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