19 June 2025
If you are covering Whitbread's latest results, please see the following comment from Mamta Valechha, consumer discretionary analyst at Quilter Cheviot:
"Whitbread shared a brief update for the first quarter, showing that business is progressing as expected. Room sales in the UK were slightly down overall, especially outside of London, but Premier Inn continued to perform better than other similar hotel chains and did especially well in the capital.
"Food and drink sales dropped by 16%, mainly because the company sold some underperforming restaurants and is converting others into more hotel rooms.
"In Germany, things are picking up speed. Hotel performance improved by nearly 12%, driven by more bookings and higher prices as the brand continues to mature. Whitbread confirmed it’s still on track to deliver a positive pre-tax profit this year.
"There wasn't any guidance, which is normal for this kind of update but the company is feeling confident. It commented that the forward booked position is ahead of last year and it can continue to outperform the market, which it also said in its full year results. Cost inflation is expected to stay at the lower end of its 2–3% range."
