FTSE 250 movers: Atkins deal a Friday boost; Restaurant Group goes cold
Telecoms and defence engineer WS Atkins rallied the FTSE 250 after agreeing late on Thursday to be taken over by Canada's SNC-Lavalin for £2.1bn.
According to the deal agreed by the FTSE 250 company's board confirmed that Atkins shareholders will each receive 2,080p per share, as offered at the start of the month.
Shares in TalkTalk rose as a note from HSBC said the broadband provider should benefit from changes to Wholesale Local Access.
Peel Hunt upgraded Domino’s Pizza to ‘buy’ from ‘hold’ following recent weakness and the shares became tasty for investors.
“Domino’s has generated a 23% profit before tax compound annual growth rate and a 25% earnings CAGR over the last 14 years. We believe the company’s long-term investment case is intact, and offers increasing competitive advantages as well as the potential for forecast upgrades over the medium term.”
Hastings Group recovered from losses earlier in the week when the shares were cut cut to 'equalweight' at Barclays.
Regulator Ofcom said last month that it plans to cut the wholesale price BT can charge its rivals for superfast broadband.
Restaurant Group was under pressure after its finance chief left following less than a year at the company.
Paper and plastics product supplier Essentra gave back Thursday's gains sparked by confirmation that trading for the financial year to date had been in line with the board's expectations.
The group's like-for-like revenue modestly declined as anticipated, but the trend in all three divisions in the first quarter improved compared with each of the previous two quarters, his statement read.
Sports Direct fell after announcing it had received approval to go ahead with the $101m acquisition of Bob’s Stores and Eastern Mountain Sports in the US.
On Wednesday, the FTSE 250 company received approval from the Delaware Bankruptcy court in the US to buy certain assets of Eastern Outfitters, including Bob's Stores and Eastern Mountain Sports. They have 50 stores in the US selling sports and casual wear as well as camping equipment and clothing.
Market Movers
FTSE 100 (UKX) 7,123.36 0.07%
FTSE 250 (MCX) 19,392.90 0.07%
techMARK (TASX) 3,414.91 -0.06%
FTSE 250 - Risers
Atkins (WS) (ATK) 2,082.00p 5.05%
TalkTalk Telecom Group (TALK) 198.50p 5.03%
Hastings Group Holdings (HSTG) 290.10p 3.20%
Lancashire Holdings Limited (LRE) 707.50p 2.46%
AO World (AO.) 138.20p 2.37%
Virgin Money Holdings (UK) (VM.) 309.70p 2.31%
Elementis (ELM) 289.40p 2.15%
Ferrexpo (FXPO) 150.20p 1.83%
Aldermore Group (ALD) 235.10p 1.73%
Drax Group (DRX) 300.70p 1.66%
FTSE 250 - Fallers
Essentra (ESNT) 519.50p -2.44%
Restaurant Group (RTN) 356.60p -2.41%
Sanne Group (SNN) 674.50p -2.10%
Cairn Energy (CNE) 196.90p -2.09%
Allied Minds (ALM) 161.40p -2.00%
Go-Ahead Group (GOG) 1,751.00p -1.74%
SSP Group (SSPG) 433.00p -1.59%
Sports Direct International (SPD) 310.30p -1.49%
McCarthy & Stone (MCS) 191.40p -1.34%
IP Group (IPO) 137.90p -1.29%