FTSE 250 movers: Metro Bank rises, Ferrexpo loses its shine

London’s FTSE 250 was up 0.20% at 18,849.35 in afternoon trading on Monday, with Metro Bank leading the way higher even after shorts positions against the challenger bank's shares jumped to an all-time high.

UK gambling outfit Rank Group was also on the rise after Jefferies handed out 'buy' ratings to its contemporaries GVC Holdings, William Hill and Paddy Power Betfair.

"We see two stages in the evolution of the UK-listed gaming sector: 1. A re-rating now that the regulation-driven downgrade cycle is largely complete and there is greater earnings certainty; 2. A realisation of the scale of US sports betting opportunity," Jefferies said.

UDG Healthcare climbed after Liberum analysts reiterated their 'buy' rating of the stock, saying the company's recent cycle of earnings downgrades should be over.

"The fundamentals of the business remain attractive with 8% organic EPS growth forecast to 2023 which should be supplemented by M&A given UDG's unlevered balance sheet. Since June 2018 the shares have de-rated by circa 40% but with momentum turning and the fundamentals attractive, this is a buying opportunity," they said.

Iron ore pellet producer Ferrexpo slumped after it said 2018 earnings would come in at €500m, down from €551m the previous year and announced that it was investigating payments made to a connected Ukraine charitable foundation called Blooming Land.

TalkTalk dropped after Goldman Sachs downgraded its price target from 100p to 90p, arguing that, though the telecoms giant's re-positioning in the UK broadband market had driven acceleration in subscriber growth, price pressure has meant weaker average revenue per user growth and the cost of faster growth continues to drive near-term Starmine Smart consensus downgrades.

Finally, Domino's Pizza's share price was sliced after the Sunday Times reported that as many as 90% of the takeaway giant's franchisees are refusing to open new stores unless they are given a greater share of profits, while steelmaker Kaz Minerals fell as it was cut to 'hold' at HSBC

FTSE 250 - Risers

Metro Bank (MTRO) 1,284.00p 7.00%
Rank Group (RNK) 173.20p 5.35%
Hill & Smith Holdings (HILS) 1,142.00p 3.07%
UDG Healthcare Public Limited Company (UDG) 607.50p 2.88%
FirstGroup (FGP) 95.00p 2.87%
Greggs (GRG) 1,588.00p 2.72%
Premier Oil (PMO) 73.91p 2.58%
Greencore Group (GNC) 189.75p 2.51%
Funding Circle Holdings (FCH) 319.60p 2.44%
Brewin Dolphin Holdings (BRW) 304.80p 2.42%

FTSE 250 - Fallers

Ferrexpo (FXPO) 240.30p -8.32%
Dixons Carphone (DC.) 133.80p -4.05%
Renishaw (RSW) 4,322.00p -3.01%
Investec (INVP) 482.80p -2.29%
IP Group (IPO) 106.80p -2.20%
TalkTalk Telecom Group (TALK) 104.00p -2.16%
Domino's Pizza Group (DOM) 256.60p -1.95%
Sports Direct International (SPD) 277.10p -1.77%
Kaz Minerals (KAZ) 608.80p -1.65%
JD Sports Fashion (JD.) 450.30p -1.53%