Whitbread (LON:WTB) Stock Price Passes Above Two Hundred Day Moving Average – What’s Next?

Whitbread plc (LON:WTB) shares passed above its two hundred day moving average during trading on Monday . The stock has a two hundred day moving average of GBX 2,728.72 ($37.14) and traded as high as GBX 2,959 ($40.27). Whitbread shares last traded at GBX 2,925 ($39.81), with a volume of 248,487 shares changing hands.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Shore Capital reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Whitbread in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Citigroup decreased their price target on Whitbread from GBX 3,700 ($50.36) to GBX 3,300 ($44.92) and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of GBX 2,413.33 ($32.85).

Whitbread Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 33.18, a quick ratio of 1.74 and a current ratio of 0.96. The company has a market cap of £5.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.62, a P/E/G ratio of -3.09 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a fifty day moving average of GBX 2,814.79 and a two-hundred day moving average of GBX 2,728.72.

Whitbread (LON:WTB) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The company reported GBX 194.60 ($2.65) earnings per share for the quarter. Whitbread had a return on equity of 6.83% and a net margin of 8.08%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Whitbread plc will post 227.1851852 EPS for the current year.

Whitbread announced that its board has authorized a stock buyback plan on Thursday, May 1st that permits the company to buyback 0 outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to reacquire shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are generally an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity at Whitbread

In related news, insider Hemant Patel sold 2,607 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 ($37.97), for a total transaction of £72,735.30 ($99,000.00). Also, insider Dominic Paul sold 3,206 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of GBX 2,790 ($37.97), for a total value of £89,447.40 ($121,746.84). 1.03% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.