J D Wetherspoon’s (JDW) Hold Rating Reaffirmed at Peel Hunt

J D Wetherspoon (LON:JDW)‘s stock had its “hold” rating reiterated by stock analysts at Peel Hunt in a report released on Friday, Digital Look reports. They currently have a GBX 800 price objective on the stock. Peel Hunt’s target price indicates a potential downside of 9.45% from the company’s current price.

Separately, Shore Capital Group reissued a “hold” rating and issued a GBX 813 target price on shares of J D Wetherspoon in a report on Friday. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of GBX 728.25.

J D Wetherspoon Trading Up 8.7%

LON JDW opened at GBX 883.50 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day moving average is GBX 811.86 and its two-hundred day moving average is GBX 701.20. J D Wetherspoon has a one year low of GBX 530.50 and a one year high of GBX 915. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 353.03, a quick ratio of 0.19 and a current ratio of 0.23. The firm has a market cap of £931.26 million, a PE ratio of 15.55, a P/E/G ratio of 3.39 and a beta of 1.13.

J D Wetherspoon (LON:JDW) last announced its earnings results on Friday, October 2nd. The company reported GBX 51.60 earnings per share for the quarter. J D Wetherspoon had a net margin of 2.70% and a return on equity of 17.99%. Analysts expect that J D Wetherspoon will post 52.8508772 earnings per share for the current year.

Key Stories Impacting J D Wetherspoon

Here are the key news stories impacting J D Wetherspoon this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Annual revenue increased 5.2% to approximately £2.24 billion, with sales surpassing £2 billion. The company also reported positive like-for-like sales momentum over the latest nine-week period, indicating continued customer demand. Wetherspoon Revenue Rises 5.2% as Higher Costs Reduce Annual Profit
• Positive Sentiment: The stock reached a new 52-week high, reflecting strong recent momentum. It is trading above both its 50-day and 200-day moving averages, suggesting that investor sentiment remains supportive despite the weaker profit outlook. J D Wetherspoon Hits New 52-Week High
• Neutral Sentiment: J D Wetherspoon reported quarterly EPS of GBX 51.60, a net margin of 2.52% and return on equity of 15.81%. These figures show profitability remains positive, although margins are thin for a highly leveraged operator.
• Neutral Sentiment: Peel Hunt and Shore Capital both reaffirmed “hold” ratings, with price targets of GBX 800 and GBX 813 respectively. The recommendations suggest analysts see limited near-term upside after the recent share-price advance. J D Wetherspoon Given Hold Rating at Peel Hunt Shore Capital Reaffirms Hold Rating
• Negative Sentiment: Annual pre-tax profit fell 28% as wage, utility, business-rate and other operating costs increased. Chairman Tim Martin also highlighted the impact of higher taxes, meaning sales growth is not translating into comparable earnings growth. Wetherspoon Annual Pre-Tax Profit Falls 28%

J D Wetherspoon Company Profile

J D Wetherspoon owns and operates pubs and hotels throughout the UK and Ireland. The company aims to provide customers with good-quality food and drinks, served by well-trained and friendly staff, at reasonable prices.

The pubs are individually designed, and the company aims to maintain them in excellent condition.