FTSE 100 movers: 3i rallies on upgrade; Fresnillo, Randgold lose shine

London's FTSE 100 was flat at 7,344.01 in afternoon trade as PM Theresa May pulled the trigger on Brexit.

3i Group was the standout gainer as Morgan Stanley upgraded the stock to 'overweight' from 'equalweight' and lifted the price target to 823p from 710p.

It said that Action has become the key asset in 3i's portfolio.

"Like most other private equity firms,3i makes investments in a wide variety of businesses (it currently has 47 companies in its portfolio) in the expectation that, while a few may underperform, others will deliver stellar returns," it said, adding that non-food discount retailer Action is one such star and arguing that its value is not reflected in the 3i share price.

London Stock Exchange rallied as it launched a £200m share buyback after the European Commission blocked its proposed merger with Deutsche Boerse, saying it would have significantly reduced competition.

LSE said on Wednesday that although the special dividend announced as part of the merger is now not required, it will honour the capital return commitment and plans to initiate an on-market share buyback of £200m, an amount broadly equivalent to the return it would have made had the merger gone ahead.

BHP Billiton was on the front foot after its iron ore chief Edgar Basto warned that the supply of low-cost seaborne iron ore is expected to grow faster than demand, but assured that company is well-positioned to continue to grow value and shareholder returns.

Precious metals miners Randgold Resources and Fresnillo were down as gold prices retreated.

Risers

3i Group (III) 727.50p 3.85%
London Stock Exchange Group (LSE) 3,096.00p 2.38%
Intu Properties (INTU) 276.40p 1.69%
BHP Billiton (BLT) 1,243.00p 1.30%
Ashtead Group (AHT) 1,622.00p 1.12%
Associated British Foods (ABF) 2,639.00p 1.03%
Hammerson (HMSO) 567.50p 0.98%
Scottish Mortgage Inv Trust (SMT) 366.70p 0.85%
Mediclinic International (MDC) 778.50p 0.84%
British Land Company (BLND) 603.50p 0.75%

Fallers

Taylor Wimpey (TW.) 190.00p -1.55%
Fresnillo (FRES) 1,539.00p -1.47%
Barratt Developments (BDEV) 538.00p -1.47%
Randgold Resources Ltd. (RRS) 7,070.00p -1.39%
Severn Trent (SVT) 2,374.00p -1.17%
SSE (SSE) 1,480.00p -1.07%
Aviva (AV.) 527.50p -1.03%
International Consolidated Airlines Group SA (CDI) (IAG) 529.50p -1.03%
Experian (EXPN) 1,608.00p -0.99%
Prudential (PRU) 1,706.50p -0.93%