Langton Capital – 2026-05-06 – JD Wetherspoon, Diageo, Hostelworld, trading, food costs & other:
JD Wetherspoon, Diageo, Hostelworld, trading, food costs & other:A DAY IN THE LIFE: How is it that my dog, your dog, any dog, is deaf when told to stop doing something irritating, or to come here, or to get away from something really nauseating but, when a biscuit is dropped in their food bowl, they’ll hear it from 100 metres away? Maybe it’s a different type of sound? Or maybe it’s a different time of day or they’ve just cleared up an ear infection or it could be something to do with atmospheric pressure but, when you’ve stripped away all of the wrong answers, as Mr Sherlock Holmes reassured us, you’re left with the right one. Namely that feigning deafness they consider to be a consequence-free two fingers at you, particularly likely if or when they shoot you the odd glance whilst ignoring you but, well, your food is your food and that’s a different matter altogether. Anyway, if the price of getting the dog in from the far end of the garden when it’s raining is the odd gravy bone – about 100 for a quid from Tesco – then it’s maybe one worth paying. On to the news: LANGTON EMAIL: The Free Email is now written in short form. Extended versions of many stories (after the ellipses) are in the Premium Email. Reply to this email if you would like to upgrade. Prices for the Premium are £395 for one subscription, £695 for multiple, £995 for very large subscribers, all plus VAT. Or sign up for easy in, easy out monthly option per subscriber HERE https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_s-xclick&hosted_button_id=87YUG2Z5W7PSN sent separately PUBS & RESTAURANTS: Food costs: A study carried out by the Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit suggests that food costs may have risen by 50% between mid-2021 and the end of this year. It says that this is leaving consumers, particularly those on modest earnings, having to cut back elsewhere… • See premium. Reply for sample or to upgrade. Single £395, multiple £695. Limited time offer: PayPal alternative monthly £25 + VAT per sub. Easy in, easy out. Pub closures: The BBPA has reported that around two British pubs closed a day in Q1 this year with a total of 161 pubs closing their doors permanently over the period… • See premium. Reply for sample or to upgrade. Single £395, multiple £695. Limited time offer: PayPal alternative monthly £25 + VAT per sub. Easy in, easy out. Trading: The Oxford Partnership comments on early May trading when it says that ‘the UK on trade enjoyed a strong Early May Bank Holiday, with pubs selling 27.3 million pints over the four-day weekend, up +5.0% on last year, as warmer weather and longer visits combined to drive higher volumes… • See premium. Reply for sample or to upgrade. Single £395, multiple £695. Limited time offer: PayPal alternative monthly £25 + VAT per sub. Easy in, easy out. Trading continued: Meaningful Vision reports that fast food and casual dining restaurants saw their steepest decline in consumer traffic for two years in Q1 this year, largely as a result of continued cost of living pressures… • See premium. Reply for sample or to upgrade. Single £395, multiple £695. Limited time offer: PayPal alternative monthly £25 + VAT per sub. Easy in, easy out. Disposable incomes: UK Finance has suggested that mortgage affordability for UK home-owners is at its most challenged since 2008. Separately, food price warnings have been multiplying and the RAC has reported that, whilst fuel prices fell at the end of April, they are now once again close to their highest since the US and Israeli attacks on Iran commenced on 28 February… • See premium. Reply for sample or to upgrade. Single £395, multiple £695. Limited time offer: PayPal alternative monthly £25 + VAT per sub. Easy in, easy out. Other news: Whisky companies have reacted with relief to the news that US president Donald Trump is to remove tariff restrictions on whisky exports into the US… The £10 pint. The NTIA has said that, spotting pints being sold at £10 each in Central London is not big news. It says that the situation is ‘far more complex’ than the headline figure would suggest… JD WETHERSPOON – Q3 UPDATE:
JDW reports that ‘Like-for-like sales increased by 3.4% in the 13 weeks to 26 April 2026, compared to the same period last year.’ It adds that Year-to-date like-for-like sales increased by 4.3%. The group reports that, taking into account disposals and new openings, total sales increased by 4.1% in the quarter and by 4.9% YTD. Balance sheet: The group reports that ‘in the YTD, the company has opened eight pubs and sold eight.’ It says that it now operates 794 managed pubs and adds that an additional 21 pubs operate under a franchise agreement. There have been 13 franchised openings in the YTD. In the YTD, the company has purchased 3,845,754 of its own shares for cancellation at an average price of £6.80 a share. The group reports that it ‘has purchased the freehold reversions of four pubs for a total of £12.2 million, bringing the amount we’ve spent on freehold reversions since 2011 to • See premium. Reply for sample or to upgrade. Single £395, multiple £695. Limited time offer: PayPal alternative monthly £25 + VAT per sub. Easy in, easy out. COMPANY NEWS: Diageo has updated on Q3 trading (to end-March) saying that revenue rose by 2.3% in reported terms to $4.48bn with volumes up by 0.4%. The company says that ‘strong organic net sales growth was delivered in Europe, LAC and Africa’ but adds that ‘Asia Pacific net sales declined slightly with weakness in Chinese white spirits offsetting low-single-digit growth in international premium spirits… • See premium. Reply for sample or to upgrade. Single £395, multiple £695. Limited time offer: PayPal alternative monthly £25 + VAT per sub. Easy in, easy out. Whitbread pub restaurant sales. The Times reports that Whitbread has approached established pub companies, including Greene King, Heineken, Marston’s and Punch, in order to ascertain the level of demand for its pub-restaurant assets. Franco Manca has seen its proposed CVA approved by creditors and has revealed the list of the 16 restaurants that are to close… • See premium. Reply for sample or to upgrade. Single £395, multiple £695. Limited time offer: PayPal alternative monthly £25 + VAT per sub. Easy in, easy out. AB InBev yesterday reported Q1 numbers saying that it had turned in a ‘solid top- and bottom-line performance.’ It announced that revenue was up by 5.8% with beer volume growth of 1.2%. it reported a 20.8% Underlying EPS increase… • See premium. Reply for sample or to upgrade. Single £395, multiple £695. Limited time offer: PayPal alternative monthly £25 + VAT per sub. Easy in, easy out. Greene King has reported group revenue rose by 3.6% to £2.54bn for the 53 weeks to 4 January 2026. It adds that adjusted operating profit rose 9.8% to £217.4m. HOLIDAYS & LEISURE TRAVEL: Hostelworld has updated on trading in a statement that will be read to its AGM later today, saying that year-to-date revenue momentum has been maintained but that FY 2026 guidance can be reiterated only ‘subject to macro conditions…’ • See premium. Reply for sample or to upgrade. Single £395, multiple £695. Limited time offer: PayPal alternative monthly £25 + VAT per sub. Easy in, easy out. Jet fuel shortages. City AM reports that ‘the UK is particularly vulnerable to the jet fuel shortages caused by the Iran war, as the risk of rationing looms as supplies fall to “critically low levels” while the summer holidays creep closer….’ FINANCE & MARKETS: Nissan has announced it will cut one of its Sunderland production lines and will shed some 900 jobs across Europe as a whole. The company says ‘we will consolidate production from two lines to one at our Sunderland plant as we assess future opportunities to secure full plant utilisation.’ Longer- UK borrowing costs have now risen to their highest level since 1998, largely as a result of international tensions. Yesterday, the yield on UK government 30-year bonds reached a 28 year high whilst the more heavily traded 10-year bonds, which yielded around 5.06% at the time, were hitting 18-year highs. Sterling $1.3588 and €1.1587. Oil $108.39. UK 10 year gilt yield 5.07%. World markets heading better yesterday and London set to open up around 105 points as at 6.30am. RETAIL WITH NICK BUBB: • See premium. Reply for sample or to upgrade. Single £395, multiple £695. Limited time offer: PayPal alternative monthly £25 + VAT per sub. Easy in, easy out. |
|
