FTSE 100 movers: Ashtead powers ahead on results, Shire in the green
London's FTSE 100 was down 0.5% to 7,242.56 in afternoon trade on Tuesday.
Ashtead was the standout gainer after the equipment rental firm said it will increase and extend its share buyback plans as it expects full-year results to beat current expectations following a strong first quarter.
On the back of the buoyant end markets in the US and UK and a combination of organic growth and bolt-on acquisitions, the group grew statutory revenue 22% to £1.05bn in the three months to 31 July, with underlying pre-tax profit up 23% to £285.6m.
Hargreaves Lansdown analyst Nicholas Hyett said: "Donald Trump’s economic policies are playing out quite nicely for Ashtead. A massive cut to corporation tax has done wonders for profits this year, and it’s also sparked a round of investment in the domestic US economy which is seeing demand for Ashtead’s construction equipment soar."
Shire was also on the rise even as family members of Takeda spoke out against the Japanese pharmaceutical company's acquisition of the Dublin-based group.
According to reports, a group of small rebel investors including members of the Takeda family that founded the company are arguing that buying Shire would be damaging because of the large amount of debt needed to finance the deal.
Shire's gains also coincided with news that Takeda plans to shutter its 1,000 employee US headquarters in Deerfield and move to Boston.
FTSE 100 - Risers
Ashtead Group (AHT) 2,393.00p 4.96%
Shire Plc (SHP) 4,338.50p 1.72%
Rightmove (RMV) 484.55p 0.95%
AstraZeneca (AZN) 5,750.00p 0.82%
Hargreaves Lansdown (HL.) 2,191.00p 0.69%
Smurfit Kappa Group (SKG) 3,166.00p 0.57%
Coca-Cola HBC AG (CDI) (CCH) 2,542.00p 0.47%
Paddy Power Betfair (PPB) 6,825.00p 0.44%
SEGRO (SGRO) 651.80p 0.34%
NMC Health (NMC) 3,668.00p 0.27%
FTSE 100 - Fallers
Fresnillo (FRES) 784.60p -3.42%
BHP Billiton (BLT) 1,479.60p -2.31%
Imperial Brands (IMB) 2,638.00p -2.24%
British American Tobacco (BATS) 3,575.50p -2.13%
Pearson (PSON) 868.60p -2.01%
Randgold Resources Ltd. (RRS) 4,629.00p -1.95%
easyJet (EZJ) 1,391.50p -1.94%
Ocado Group (OCDO) 953.60p -1.93%
Royal Bank of Scotland Group (RBS) 245.20p -1.64%
Prudential (PRU) 1,662.50p -1.54%