Whitbread sales up but City fears Airbnb’s growing allure
Whitbread’s aim is to expand apace, especially in London, where its “hub” hotel concept aims to attract tourists who want a small, high-tech room in the centre of town.
Today it said Premier Inn revenues were up 1.8% in the three months to December 1. Costa Coffee sales were up 4.3% on a like-for-like basis.
But Panmure Gordon was sceptical, saying in a note to clients: “We feel it too early to call a more bullish trend for Premier Inn given the questionable sustainability of UK consumer buoyancy and growth in the sharing economy (Airbnb) and the potential impact on leisure/value hotels.”
The company did note that London hotel revenues are down 6.5%.
However, some analysts think that the decline is down to tourists avoiding city centres for fear of terror attacks, rather than the sharing economy. The shares took a hit, down 5% to 3871p.
Chief executive Alison Brittain says the company is on track to open 3700 new Premier rooms. The restaurants, typically attached to the hotels, are doing less well. Sales were down 1.5%.
Brittain thinks this year will be rockier than last. “So far, things have been remarkably buoyant overall. But it’s been a bit more volatile week by week. There’s a softening of confidence.”
The City still thinks Whitbread is on target to hit profit forecasts of £555 million for the full year.
In January, Whitbread had to apologise after pork was found in its beef lasagne.
