British tour operator Thomas Cook, which owns the Swedish charter company Ving, among other things, is issuing a profit warning for the second time in two months.
The share price collapses on the London Stock Exchange, plummeting by around 20 percent.
The company now states that annual profit is expected to be around 250 million pounds, 30 million pounds lower than previously expected and 58 million pounds lower than last year's result, and is pausing its share dividend.
Thomas Cook lost £88m on its charter business in the 12 months to September, the company said, as customers delayed booking trips due to the heatwave at home.
According to Thomas Cook, bookings for the winter are 3 percent lower than last year. The company's CEO Peter Fankhauser says in a comment according to the BBC that 2018 has been a disappointment.
”The UK has been particularly hard hit with major price cuts on top of an already competitive market for travel to Spain,” he says.
In its profit warning at the end of September, Thomas Cook lowered its full-year operating profit forecast from £323 (as reported by the Independent at the time; the company itself predicted an underlying operating profit at the lower end of the expectations range on July 31) to £280 million.
Source: di.se
