FTSE 100 movers: Housebuilders rally; BAT hit by downgrade

London’s FTSE 100 was down 0.3% at 6,922.13 in afternoon trade on Friday.

British American Tobacco was knocked lower by a downgrade to ‘neutral’ from ‘overweight’ at JPMorgan.

Going the other way, JD Sports was the top gainer on the index after Berenberg said it was its "top pick" in consumer discretionary.

The bank, which reiterated its ‘buy’ rating and 1,100p price target on the stock, said the retailer demonstrated a "remarkable" recovery last year, significantly outperforming sports retail and brand peers, further demonstrating the strength and resilience of its brand and proposition.

"However, despite being perceived as a ‘lockdown winner’, it has not traded like one and with the shares remaining flat versus pre-pandemic levels, it has not traded like a ‘vaccine winner’ either," Berenberg said.

The bank reckons JD is hugely underestimated as a reopening trade, and there is significant upside risk to consensus forecasts from pent-up demand and attractive M&A optionality.

Housebuilders Taylor Wimpey, Persimmon and Barratt Developments were also higher after the latest figures from Halifax showed house prices hit a new record in March.

FTSE 100 - Risers

JD Sports Fashion (JD.) 902.40p 3.44%
Taylor Wimpey (TW.) 191.15p 2.47%
Persimmon (PSN) 3,237.00p 2.27%
Barratt Developments (BDEV) 798.00p 2.15%
Pearson (PSON) 813.60p 2.03%
Weir Group (WEIR) 1,850.50p 1.98%
Burberry Group (BRBY) 2,043.00p 1.69%
Croda International (CRDA) 6,630.00p 1.66%
Spirax-Sarco Engineering (SPX) 12,145.00p 1.63%
Next (NXT) 8,336.00p 1.58%

FTSE 100 - Fallers

Fresnillo (FRES) 886.60p -2.70%
British Land Company (BLND) 506.80p -2.46%
British American Tobacco (BATS) 2,793.00p -2.29%
Auto Trader Group (AUTO) 565.20p -1.70%
Land Securities Group (LAND) 710.00p -1.63%
Imperial Brands (IMB) 1,536.50p -1.54%
Entain (ENT) 1,572.00p -1.50%
International Consolidated Airlines Group SA (CDI) (IAG) 211.35p -1.49%
Glencore (GLEN) 290.25p -1.38%
3i Group (III) 1,236.50p -1.32%