Helen Rose Acquires 7,972 Shares of WH Smith (LON:SMWH) Stock

WH Smith PLC (LON:SMWH) insider Helen Rose purchased 7,972 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 8th. The stock was bought at an average cost of GBX 627 per share, with a total value of £49,984.44.

WH Smith Stock Up 1.3%

LON SMWH opened at GBX 643.50 on Friday. The business has a fifty day moving average price of GBX 650.96 and a two-hundred day moving average price of GBX 781.90. The stock has a market capitalization of £802.41 million, a PE ratio of -5.67, a PEG ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 1.67. WH Smith PLC has a fifty-two week low of GBX 585.50 and a fifty-two week high of GBX 1,315. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 253.13, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.42.

WH Smith (LON:SMWH) last posted its earnings results on Friday, December 19th. The company reported GBX (14.20) earnings per share for the quarter. WH Smith had a return on equity of 17.78% and a net margin of 3.44%. Equities analysts expect that WH Smith PLC will post 100.9372747 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have commented on SMWH. Peel Hunt reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a GBX 800 price target on shares of WH Smith in a research note on Friday, December 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of WH Smith from GBX 750 to GBX 800 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 2nd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of GBX 875.20.

WH Smith Company Profile

WH Smith PLC operates as a retailer in the United Kingdom and internationally. It operates in two segments, Travel and High Street. The Travel segment offers news, books, and convenience for travelling customers. It operates stores in airports, hospitals, railway stations, and motorway service areas. The High Street segment sells stationery products, including greeting cards, general stationery, art and craft, and gifting products; news and impulse products, such as newspapers, magazines, confectionery, and drinks; and books.