City File: Queens Moat Houses crashes

ONCE one of the City's favourite stocks, Queens Moat Houses, has come crashing to earth. Recent interims showing a creditable 5.4 per cent rise in profits were greeted with disdain in the Square Mile, with the hotel group's shares slumping from 70p to 51p. The fall has continued, with the shares touching 26p at one stage. But Paul Slattery of Kleinwort Benson believes the City, which is worried about the size of Queens Moat's borrowings and inability to fund future growth, is over-reacting.

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