Whitbread (LON:WTB) Trading Down 10.3% - Time to Sell?

Key Points

• Whitbread plc shares fell by 10.3% during mid-day trading, reaching a low of GBX 2,876 ($38.66) from a previous closing price of GBX 3,224 ($43.34).
• Equities analysts have varied opinions on the stock, with some raising price targets and maintaining buy ratings, while others lower targets; the consensus is a Moderate Buy rating with a price target of GBX 3,600.
• The company reported a quarterly earnings per share (EPS) of GBX 133.70 with a return on equity of 6.83%, while forecasting an average EPS of approximately 227.19 for the current fiscal year.

Whitbread plc (LON:WTB - Get Free Report) shares were down 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 were traded 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 equities analysts have issued reports on WTB shares. Berenberg Bank cut their target price on Whitbread from GBX 3,900 to GBX 3,500 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. Shore Capital reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Whitbread in a research report on Thursday. Citigroup upped their price target on Whitbread from GBX 3,600 to GBX 3,800 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 21st. Finally, Peel Hunt reissued a "buy" rating and set a GBX 3,500 price target on shares of Whitbread in a research report on Thursday. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Whitbread has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of GBX 3,600.

Whitbread Stock Performance

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 firm has a market capitalization of £4.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 2,057.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of -3.09 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a 50-day moving average of GBX 3,152.79 and a 200-day moving average of GBX 2,921.34.

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