Leisure, Tourism & Travel

Leisure, Tourism & Travel equity research

Explore the most viewed and latest equity research and media content for companies within the Leisure, Tourism & Travel sector. Companies that operate in this sector provide goods and services related to: airlines, gambling, hotels, tourism, leisure & entertainment.

05 Aug 20

Defending the virus-hit business by underpinning the balance sheet

The leading network airlines group reported a heavy Q2 net loss and its H2 forecast has been revised downward. Nevertheless, IAG maintains its recovery expectations despite a more pessimistic market outlook. The group will call for a €2.75bn fund raising to cope with the health crisis.

Companies: International Consolidated Airlines Group SA

06 Aug 20

H1 20 profits surprise; online to the fore

William Hill reported strong H1 20 numbers, with revenue and profits ahead of estimates. Revenue was down 32%, a significant improvement vs the 57% drop seen in the weeks immediately following the lockdowns. The adjusted EBIT came in at £11.8m, thanks to better-than-expected savings from cost control. The net debt/EBITDA ratio is down to 2.1x (vs 2.4x at FY19 end). Following the H1 performance, we will be raising our profit estimates to account for the impact of the recent cost controls.

Companies: William Hill Plc

11 Jul 19

Diversification and scale for online success

The global online gaming market generated c £40bn of gross gaming revenues (GGR) in 2018 and newly regulating markets (the US) are expected to contribute to 7% CAGR to 2023 (according to H2 Gambling Capital (H2GC)). However, while regulated markets have provided significant opportunities for operators to date, government intervention remains a constant threat and legislation is tightening. Some mature markets (notably the UK) have been raising taxes and implementing regulatory burdens, which increases the cost of business. In our view, success will depend on a combination of scale, diversification, proprietary technology and a strong balance sheet. Many of the 12 operators in this report should benefit from these dynamics and sector valuations remain attractive, at 12.6x P/E, 8.2x EV/EBITDA and 6.0% dividend yield for FY19.

Companies: 888 ACX BETSB ORPH GVC GYS OPAP PTEC RNK WMH

05 Jun 20

Proposed equity fundraising and move to AIM

New management has put in place a strategy which the February interim results revealed was returning the group to growth with very encouraging LFL statistics and attractive returns on refurbished outlets. In March, however, in response to COVID-19 and following UK Government guidelines, all venues had to be closed. Management initiatives have materially reduced the cash burn while the group is unable to trade, and the group’s lender has been very supportive in significantly increasing the borrowing facility. Management is now proposing an equity issue, the rationale for which is to strengthen the leverage ratio to create a more appropriate capital structure moving forward, to allow an immediate return to the estate refurbishment programme and to be able to potentially take advantage of strategic opportunities as they arise as the sector emerges from the COVID-19 crisis.

Companies: Revolution Bars Group Plc

03 Jul 20

Cenkos: Arena Events -- FY20A Results

Whilst Arena delivered FY20E results in line with our expectations, this has inevitably been overshadowed by the challenges posed by COVID-19 to the industry. Arena acted swiftly to cut costs and preserve cash, such that it currently has a c£23.5m cash balance. This is enough to see the company through into 2021, even if the global event market remains heavily disrupted for the rest of the year.

Companies: Arena Events Group Plc

04 Aug 20

bet-at-home - Improving momentum

bet-at-home reported headline figures for H120 ahead of consensus expectations. The results are encouraging given revenue growth in Q220 was better than might have been expected with the regulatory changes (Poland and Switzerland) and the impact of COVID-19 on sports betting. Management has reiterated its guidance for FY20, and the strong financial position makes the prospective dividend yield of 7.0% look attractive.

Companies: bet-at-home.com AG

01 Oct 19

STATE OF CHARGE - INVESTMENT OPPORTUNITIES IN EV CHARGING

Government bans on new fossil fueled vehicles in many major economies are likely to drive significant growth in electric vehicles (“EVs”) over the next twenty years. This will create growth in electricity demand from EV charging. The volume of energy to be supplied creates opportunities for both supply companies and generators and the provision of charge points is already creating a new industry. However, the timing of this demand puts pressure on local distribution infrastructure. While smart charging and vehicle to grid technology offer solutions, we believe these will only be partial given likely charging behaviour and as a result there will be demand for additional grid capacity and for other solutions. These other solutions include charger located storage and distributed generation.

Companies: CNA NG/ YU/ DRX GOOD RED SMS IKA AFC

04 Nov 19

THE MONTHLY November 2019

The trade-off in the risk/reward for gold and gold mining equities is improving, as central banks push the current iteration of the post-World War II Bretton Woods financial order towards its limits.

Companies: AVO AJB AGY ARBB BUR CLIG DNL DPP FLTA GTLY GDR MCL MUR NSF PCA PIN SRE PHP RE/ RECI RMDL STX SCE TON SHED VTA W7L

30 Jan 20

Strong sales growth but higher debt is a concern

JDW’s Q2 performance was slightly ahead of our estimates. The publican benefited as Britons continued to go out to eat and drink over Christmas and the New Year. Management’s disclosure of a further increase in FY19/20 net debt is a concern (although it is attributable to higher than expected capital expenditure). No significant changes to our financial estimates.

Companies: JD Wetherspoon Plc

11 Feb 20

Cenkos: Arena Events Group Plc -- Interim results

Despite the challenging market environment, Arena has delivered interim results that were broadly in line with our expectations (Adj EBITDA of £16.6m vs £17.0m forecasted). Cost saving initiatives are being implemented, which should support margins going forwards, whilst the company is expected to benefit from some significant contracts due for delivery in FY21E.

Companies: Arena Events Group Plc

11 May 20

A heavy punch from the COVID-19 pandemic

IAG’s expectation of a faster-than-peers recovery in the activity might be affected by the UK government’s mandatary quarantine measures for all air passengers arriving in the country. Despite the industry-leading profitability and comfortable amount of cash in hand, the market environment remains challenging for the group.

Companies: International Consolidated Airlines Group SA

15 May 20

WHI Equity Research: AFC Energy (AFC) - Peer comparison and Hydrogen Market Overview

AFC Energy is a global leader in the fuel cell sector. It has a proven fuel cell technology which it is commercialising through its H-Power™ product, an off-grid electric vehicle charging system which is run on hydrogen and produces no emissions. The company's core fuel cell technology is a liquid alkaline fuel cell called HydroX-Cell(L)™. The company is also developing a solid alkaline fuel cell called HydroX-Cell(S)™ , the critical component of which is a is a solid electrolyte which upon validation will be marketed under the AlkaMem™ trademark. We expect the AlkaMem™ product to have multiple electro-chemical applications outside of fuel cells. The purpose of this note is to compare AFC Energy's products, markets and business strategy against its listed peers Ceres Power and ITM Power. The note also assesses the state and outlook of the hydrogen market in addition to the proton exchange membrane market, which is relevant for AFC Energy's AlkaMem™ product. As a reminder, we believe AFC Energy has a fair value of 27p/sh.

Companies: AFC AFC AFC

18 May 20

Q1 20 takeaway: liquidity risks addressed

William Hill announced soft numbers for the 17-week period ending 28 April. Revenue was down 27%, driven by a 35% drop in retail revenue, which was hurt by the pandemic-induced shop closures, which added to headwinds from machine staking limits in the UK. However, the liquidity position improved substantially with covenants reset and cash burn reduced substantially. Following the latest update, we will be reducing our estimates. However, we do not expect any significant change to our recommendation.

Companies: William Hill Plc

25 May 20

Can it catch opportunities in a time of crisis?

After launching a £1bn recapitalisation by way of a rights issue at a price with a heavy discount, the UK-based restaurant and (the largest) hospitality group, Whitbread, saw its share price plummet by 13%. The market movement reflects investors’ concern about the uncertain duration of Whitbread’s business downturn. Whitbread was on our list of issuers likely to be wrongfooted by the crisis the day before the rights issue announcement.

Companies: Whitbread Plc

15 Jun 20

Strong growth and momentum

The final results revealed adjusted PBT up 99% year-on-year, which was 10% better than forecast despite four upgrades during the financial year. This strong performance reflects the financial benefits that have accrued following the shift in the business model to online only, as well as management’s strategic decision to significantly increase marketing spend. A second special dividend for the 2020 financial year has also been announced, reflecting the strong cash flow characteristics of the business model. Our 2021 profit forecast implies continuing momentum and a year-on-year increase in PBT of 86%. We raise our target price to 1050p.

Companies: Best of the Best Plc

09 Oct 18

Arena Events Group plc Investor Overview

15 Jun 20

Escape Hunt to roll-out new sites, mobile games and growing the U.S. Canada franchise (Interview)

Premium

16 Apr 18

Executive interview - PPHE Hotel Group

28 May 20

City Pub Group raring to go as re-opening date gets nearer, says chairman Clive Watson

04 May 18

DP Poland - Trading Update

28 May 20

Morning Report: FTSE 100 rises on Europe’s coronavirus bailout and US reopening plans

20 Jan 20

The City Pub Group grows

26 May 20

Morning Report: FTSE 100 roars higher on plans to open up shops in UK mid-June

21 Oct 19

Everyman Media Group (EMAN) H1 results presentation September 2019

22 May 20

Air Partner Group plc (AIR) Full year results May 202

16 Jul 20

Market Report: FTSE 100 retreats as UK employment tumbles

21 May 20

Morning Report: FTSE 100 unsettled by Whitbread rights issue and spike in coronavirus cases

15 Jul 20

AFC Energy's Adam Bond hails first commercial deal as it teams up with Extreme E

18 May 20

Morning Report: FTSE 100 surges as more countries across Europe ease lockdown restrictions

21 Jul 20

Morning Report: Vaccines and EU package lift FTSE 100

Latest Content

Further cost cutting to grapple with the industry's structural downsizing

The French hotel giant reported weaker-than-expected H1 results. Management expects that RevPAR will return to its normal level only by 2022 and business may probably be down by 10% permanently. The newly-launched cost savings plan should help until travellers come back.

Accor SA

07 Aug 20
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H1 20 profits surprise; online to the fore

William Hill Plc

06 Aug 20
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In-depth restructuring is waiting to establish long-term optimisation

The Lufthansa Group reported a large but better-than-expected Q2 net loss. The H2 traffic projection remains lacklustre and the carrier may need yet another year to recover its 2019 passenger demand. The group will implement numerous in-depth restructuring plans, which could hopefully accelerate the rebuilding of its competitiveness.

Deutsche Lufthansa AG

06 Aug 20
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Defending the virus-hit business by underpinning the balance sheet

International Consolidated Airlines Group SA

05 Aug 20
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Surprising resilience of Transportation & Logistics in Q2

While we were anticipating Bolloré’s Q2 to be tough, particularly for its transportation & logistics division, an unexpected rise in air freight and positive price developments supported the division’s trading results and profitability in H1. The proven resilience of Vivendi (and UMG in particular), in addition to stronger ‘core activities’ at the Bolloré level, point to a less gloomy outlook despite the challenges of a still uncertain H2 economic recovery.

Bolloré SA

04 Aug 20
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bet-at-home - Improving momentum

bet-at-home.com AG

04 Aug 20
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The revitalisation may need more time

AF-KLM reported an enormous Q2 net loss as the market expected. The H2 performance is deemed to remain depressed and the group will need one year more than it first expected to reach its mid-term financial targets.

Air France-KLM SA

03 Aug 20
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Withstanding the revenue shocks by leading cost effectiveness

The catering industry leader reported a mediocre Q3 trading performance but, fortunately, there was an improvement in the drop-through.

Compass Group Plc

30 Jul 20
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Outperformed Q1 loss but worsened near-term outlook

Ryanair issued more pessimistic FY capacity expectations, warning the possibility of a further downgrade in the case of a second wave of COVID-19 outbreaks. This, along with the recent reintroduction of quarantine rules/travel warnings in several European countries/areas, led its share price to fall by more than 5% today.

Ryanair Holdings Plc

27 Jul 20
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Contract award and introduction of 2020 forecasts

REACT Group plc (REACT), the specialists in deep cleaning services for customers in the public and private sectors, has announced a new contract win with an existing facilities management (FM) client. This contract is in addition to the work that REACT already carries out for this client and is unrelated to COVID-19. Given the underlying activities of the business, an increasing recurring revenue stream, contract awards announced in the year to date and the maiden profit generated in H1, we feel that it is now appropriate to introduce current year forecasts. As already noted, the Group announced a maiden profit of £50k in H1 and with a positive start to the second half, a strengthened balance sheet post the June fund raise and an encouraging contract pipeline we believe that the outlook for REACT is exceptionally positive.

React Group