Jefferies raises target price on Whitbread

Analysts at Jefferies raised their target price on hotel operator Whitbread from £30 per share to £35 following what it called "a premier quarter".

"Whitbread's strong Q3, current trading and opex inflation have driven market sentiment today. We expect consensus to move up circa 10% to Jeff estimates in FY23 (group adjusted pre-tax profits £388.0m). We keep our recession scenario for full-year 2024 estimates unchanged," said the bank.

Jefferies said with strong near-term momentum now priced in, it was now time for the next leg of Whitbread's equity story - driven by M&A potential and German profit inflection.

"Whitbread trades on 11.8x 23 EV/EBITDA vs history 10.2x, with re-rating potential from defensive demand characteristics, superior yield management vs history, beneficial supply conditions and £750.0m of cash firepower," said the analysts.

Reporting by Iain Gilbert at Sharecast.com