The Fall of Thomas Cook

The British tourism group Thomas Cook has collapsed, having entered compulsory liquidation this morning. As this chart shows, the share price had plummeted from around 58 pence to just 3.45 pence in the last 365 days. Earnings per share in 2010 were 20.4 pence - in 2018 investors had to book a loss of 0.3 pence per share.

Thomas Cook most recently suffered from the unwillingness of the British to travel: Many remained at home in the face of Brexit worries and the abundance of sunshine at home. Added to this was the fear of terrorist attacks in many holiday destinations, including Turkey. In addition, discount battles have depressed the margins of travel companies. Many holidaymakers are affected by the collapse - at present, an estimated 650,000 holidaymakers are on the move with Thomas Cook, many of them British.