Deutsche Bank hikes target price on Whitbread following FY results

Analysts at Deutsche Bank hiked their target price on Premier Inn owner Whitbread from 3,530.0p to 3,780.0p on Wednesday after the group's full-year results came in ahead of expectations.

Whitbread posted pre-tax profits of £413.0m, up 6% versus consensus of £389.0m, while cash generation was said to have remained "solid", with cashflow from operating activities of £800.0m - up from £509.0m on a year ago.

Deutsche Bank pointed out that this meant that even after a high capex of £546.0m, Whitbread was able to declare dividends of 74.2p for the year and announce a £300.0m buyback to be completed by the end of the first half of 2024.

"Shares reacted positively, up 4.25% yesterday, versus a slightly negative Stoxx 600 (-0.4%)," add DB, which reiterated its 'buy' rating on the stock.

Reporting by Iain Gilbert at Sharecast.com