Whitbread has reported a 1.6% increase in like-for-like sales for the first quarter, driven by Premier Travel Inn, the group's budget hotel brand.
Total sales for the 13 weeks to I June rose by 6.9% on the previous year.
Costa reported a strong start to the year with 6.5% like-for-like sales and total sales growth of 23.7% driven by 46 new openings.
The company also announced plans to expand into China with a joint venture partnership covering Shanghai and Eastern China.
The group's flagging pub restaurant business reported a 2% drop in like-for-like sales, with a 0.2% increase in total sales.
Premier Travel Inn reported a 6.7% rise in like-for-like sales, on a 13.7% increase in total sales. In the first quarter the brand opened 1,133 rooms including eight hotel conversions; seven Holiday Inns and a hotel previously trading as a Days Inn.
The group's high street restaurant business saw like-for-likes up by 1.9%, with total sales increasing by 14.1%.
At David Lloyd Leisure, like-for-like sales were up by 2.1%, with total sales up by 6.1% for the period.
Speaking at the group's AGM, Alan Parker, Whitbread's chief executive, said: “We are pleased to report that the year has started robustly with total sales showing growth of nearly 7% and three of our four major businesses generating positive like-for-like sales.
“This reflects a number of the structural and operational changes that we have made to our business to improve performance and create value.”
Parker said that the TGI Fridays and Pizza Hut franchise businesses remained under review.
The group said that, following its decision to focus its pub restaurant estate on those joint sites with a Premier Travel Inn, it would sell 235 standalone Beefeater and Brewers Fayre sites. The sale process was said to be “progressing well”, with a high level of interest shown.
In the remaining estate, the company said that it was taking action to reduce overheads and was reviewing the operating plans for the co-located sites, with the focus being on driving the top line through covers growth.
At today's meeting, shareholders will vote on the method of returning £400m cash and a consequent share consolidation, which if approved, will give a choice as to how and when they receive the return.
