Whitbread (LON:WTB) Stock Passes Above Two Hundred Day Moving Average - Should You Sell?

Whitbread plc (LON:WTB - Get Free Report)'s stock price crossed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Friday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of GBX 2,733.58 ($37.56) and traded as high as GBX 2,829 ($38.88). Whitbread shares last traded at GBX 2,829 ($38.88), with a volume of 476,706 shares.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Shore Capital restated a "buy" rating on shares of Whitbread in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Citigroup reduced their price target on Whitbread from GBX 3,700 ($50.85) to GBX 3,300 ($45.35) and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered Whitbread to a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Two equities 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.com, Whitbread currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of GBX 2,413.33 ($33.16).

Whitbread Trading Up 3.4%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 33.18, a current ratio of 0.96 and a quick ratio of 1.74. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of GBX 2,784.81 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of GBX 2,731.41. The stock has a market cap of £5.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.57, 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, May 1st. The company reported GBX 194.60 ($2.67) EPS for the quarter. Whitbread had a return on equity of 6.83% and a net margin of 8.08%. Equities analysts forecast that Whitbread plc will post 227.1851852 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Whitbread

In other news, insider Dominic Paul sold 3,206 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of GBX 2,790 ($38.34), for a total transaction of £89,447.40 ($122,917.96). Also, insider Kal Atwal bought 269 shares of Whitbread stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 14th. The shares were bought at an average cost of GBX 2,843 ($39.07) per share, with a total value of £7,647.67 ($10,509.37). Corporate insiders own 1.03% of the company's stock.

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.