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Highlights
- J D Wetherspoon posted an 8.2% growth in overall revenue in the first half of FY24
- Backed by product portfolio expansion, operating profit surged by a notable 92.5%
- The company expects a stable outcome for FY24 and aims for continued double-digit sales growth over the medium term.
J D Wetherspoon PLC (LSE: JDW), an FTSE 250 index-listed company, is a leading pubs operator across the United Kingdom and Ireland.
The company reported an 8.2% growth in overall revenue in the first half of FY24 compared to the prior corresponding period (pcp), driven by a 9.9% increase in like-for-like sales. Within this segment, food sales and bar sales increased by 7.6% and 11.6%, respectively. Similarly, operating profit surged by a notable 92.5% backed by product portfolio expansion, which saw hotel rooms increasing by 2.8%, food sales by 7.6%, and bar sales by 11.6%.
JDW opened two new pubs in Captain Finders nearby Euston Station in London and The Star Light at Heathrow Airport. With this the company’s total capex stood at GBP 57.2 mn, consisting GBP 10.5 mn in new pubs, GBP 34.6 mn in existing pubs, and GBP 12.1 mn in freehold reversions of properties.
Recent business update
On 8 May 2024, JDW provided a trading update in which it mentioned that in the 13 weeks to 28th April 2024, the company’s like-for-like sales increased by 5.2% compared to pcp. Moreover, on year-to-date, the like-for-like sales increased by 8.3%.
Outlook
The company remains wary of the possibility of further lockdowns and has doubts regarding the government's pandemic investigation, anticipating it to extend over several years. Despite these uncertainties, the company foresees a stable outcome for FY24 and aims for continued double-digit sales growth over the medium term.
Top 10 Shareholders
The top 10 shareholders collectively form around 77.00% of the total shareholdings in the company. Martin (Timothy Randall) holds the maximum number of shares with ~25.68% shareholding, followed by Fidelity International with ~9.33% shareholding, as depicted in the chart below:
Stock performance
The stock price of JDW has witnessed an uptick of around 5.02% in the last one month and over the last 6 months, it has increased by around 13.62%. The stock has a 52-week low and 52-week high of GBX 587.00 & GBX 864.50, respectively. It is currently trading above the average of its 52-week high-low.
Note 1: Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future performance.
Note 2: The reference data for all price data, currency, technical indicators, support, and resistance levels is 10 May 2024. The reference data in this report has been partly sourced from EODHD/Others.
