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Highlights
- Train services in the UK have been impacted as several rail operators have cut down their timetables ahead of the holiday getaway period.
- Rail operators blamed the covid-19 related staff shortages for the impact on services.
- 500 frontline staffers at the Transport for London (TfL) are on covid-19 related absences.
Several rail operators have cut down their timetables ahead of the holiday getaway period due to covid-19 induced staff shortages.
This impact in train services comes as several train companies’ staff are either sick or isolating amidst rising covid-19 cases in the country.
London’s transport network, Transport for London (TfL) said about 500 of its staff who were in the frontline were not at work at present owing to illnesses related to the covid-19 virus.
CrossCountry, a UK based train operator, stated that it anticipated widespread disruption to its train services this week, according to a Yahoo Finance UK report quoting the operator.
The operator added its services could likely start later and end earlier and that some trains could contain fewer carriages than usual.
Let us explore the investment prospects of 2 FTSE 250 index listed train stocks and see how they reacted to the news:
- Trainline PLC (LON:TRN)
Trainline is a travel services company, and a global rail and coach travel online platform.
The group’s net ticket sales for H1 2022 ended 31 August stood at £1,000 million, a 179 per cent jump from its net ticket sales of £358 million in H1 2021.
During the period, its adjusted EBITDA stood at £15 million, reversing from a negative adjusted EBITDA of £16 million in H1 2021.
The group has forecasted its FY 2022 net ticket sales to be between £2.4 to £2.8 billion.
Image source: EODHD/Others
Trainline’s shares were up by 0.59 per cent, trading at GBX 273.60 on 21 December at 11:05 AM BST. The group has a market capitalisation of £1,307.45 million as of Tuesday.
The midcap (FTSE 250) index, on the other hand, was at 22,824.36, higher by 1.22 per cent.
- FirstGroup PLC (LON:FGP)
FirstGroup is a transport operator based in Scotland. It has operations in the UK and North America.
The group’s H1 2022 total revenue, for the 26 weeks to 25 September, stood at £3,109.7 million, compared to £3,101.6 million in H1 2021.
During the period, its adjusted operating profit increased to £173.1 million, from £10.4 million in H1 2021.
Image source: EODHD/Others
FirstGroup’s shares fell by 1.26 per cent, trading at GBX 101.90 on 21 December at 12:20 hrs BST. The group has a market capitalisation of £770.56 million as of Tuesday.
FirstGroup has given shareholders a return of 40.17 per cent in the past one year.
