(Adds details, broker comments)
July 29 (Reuters) - Specialist holiday firm Holidaybreak Plc said on Wednesday trading prospects for the current financial year remained satisfactory and in line with management expectations and that its chief executive would step down.
The company said Chief Executive Carl Michel would stand down for personal reasons, effective Sept. 30, and it named John Coleman as executive chairman with immediate effect.
"Overall, the group is now booked at 94 percent of our target sales, with year-to-date sales up 2 percent on last year," the company said in a statement.
"There has been no material impact on our businesses arising from the swine flu pandemic," the education, leisure and activity travel group said.
The group, which recently completed its 33.2 million pounds rights issue, said it was progressing with negotiations for the acquisition of a large PGL outdoor education centre.
Numis Securities lowered its rating on Holidaybreak to "add" from "buy," citing recent strength in the shares and the resignation of the CEO.
However, the brokerage maintained its forecasts for the company and said it expected the more resilient education and camping divisions to generate 60 percent of next year's profits.
The group's operating divisions are education, hotel breaks, adventure travel and camping.
Numis expects Holidaybreak to report a 2009 pretax profit of 26.9 million pounds on sales of 463.2 million pounds and a 2010 pretax profit of 30.2 million pounds on sales of 464.3 million pounds.
Holidaybreak shares were up roughly 1 percent to 252.75 pence at 1117 GMT on the London Stock Exchange.

(Reporting by Ramkumar in Bangalore; Editing by Ratul Ray Chaudhuri) Keywords: HOLIDAYBREAK/ (ram.kumar@thomsonreuters.com +91 80 41355800; Reuters Messaging: ram.kumar.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net)

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