Key points:
- Whitbread released interim results on Tuesday
- The company reported a H1 pre-tax profit
- However, WTB warned of rising costs
Whitbread (LON: WTB) announced a pre-tax profit in its interim results on Tuesday, following an increase in demand for leisure travel.
The hospitality firm reported statutory revenue of £1.35 billion, an increase of 104% compared to the prior year. Meanwhile, profit before tax was £307.4 million, up from a loss of £37.8 million in the previous year.
According to the company, robust leisure demand and the resumption of business travel to pre-pandemic levels caused a significant increase in consumer demand at the start of the year.
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Furthermore, despite a challenging economic backdrop, Whitbread said market demand has remained robust, and its strong performance has continued.
Therefore, the company has maintained a positive forward-booked position, and momentum into Q3 has been in line with its YTD trend.
“We delivered an outstanding trading performance in the first half of the year, with revenues and profit before tax above pre-pandemic levels,” commented Whitbread Chief Executive Alison Brittain.
Brittain added: “Our UK hotels traded well-ahead of the market, benefiting from our’ investing to win’ commercial and operational initiatives that are continuing to drive growth.”
However, the company warned of additional inflation, with labour, utility bills, and investment in IT and marketing resulting in total costs rising to £60 million.
Whitbread shares are currently down 1.34%.
The company announced an interim dividend of £49 million (24.4p per share), payable on December 16. In addition, Whitbread stated that given its recent trading performance, the group remains confident in its full-year outlook.
