FTSE 100 movers: Compass charges higher; Tui hit by earnings downgrade
London's FTSE 100 was down 0.7% to 7,123.18 in afternoon trade on Thursday as investors mulled over a dovish policy announcement from the Bank of England.
Tui tanked as the tour operator cut its earnings outlook due to warm weather and the weak pound.
The company said it now expects underlying earnings before interest, taxes and amortisation for the fiscal year ending 30 September 2019 to be broadly stable compared to the record year in FY18, when it came in at €1.18bn.
Ocado was also on the back foot again as the fire at its high-tech Andover warehouse continued to burn for a third day, with local residents having to be evacuated due to clouds of burning chemicals.
Peel Hunt said the fire at the Andover warehouse was "an opportunity to raise the technology bar even higher".
"Whilst the events of the past few days have caused short-term disruption, they have given Ocado an opportunity to raise the bar even further, as shown by decisions made following events at ASOS and Northgate Information Systems in the past. With a supportive shareholder base, Ocado must now take the findings of the investigation into those events and supercharge its operation. We take great solace in that it can do that now."
WPP was sharply lower after French advertising rival Publicis reported weaker-than-expected fourth-quarter organic revenues, while software group Sage retreated as its stock went ex-dividend.
Going the other way, catering company Compass rallied all the way to the top of the leader board as it said organic revenue for the three months to 31 December 2018 grew by 6.9% driven by strong levels of new business wins, continued good retention rates and bolstered by the impact of the new UK Defence contracts and a positive sporting events calendar.
Smith & Nephew was also in the green as it launched five new strategic "imperatives" for the medium-term after it enjoyed a solid finish to 2018. Revenue for the calendar year grew 2% to $4.9bn, with trading profit up 7% to $1.1bn.
FTSE 100 - Risers
Compass Group (CPG) 1,764.00p 4.01%
Smith & Nephew (SN.) 1,519.50p 3.97%
Diageo (DGE) 2,970.00p 1.54%
Imperial Brands (IMB) 2,570.50p 1.38%
British American Tobacco (BATS) 2,769.50p 1.32%
Hiscox Limited (DI) (HSX) 1,485.00p 1.09%
GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) 1,563.00p 0.97%
Centrica (CNA) 139.45p 0.90%
SEGRO (SGRO) 648.80p 0.87%
3i Group (III) 919.20p 0.81%
FTSE 100 - Fallers
TUI AG Reg Shs (DI) (TUI) 952.60p -19.54%
Ocado Group (OCDO) 877.00p -9.44%
WPP (WPP) 811.60p -7.10%
Wood Group (John) (WG.) 516.60p -5.38%
Smith (DS) (SMDS) 336.10p -4.71%
Smurfit Kappa Group (SKG) 2,204.00p -4.42%
Mondi (MNDI) 1,827.00p -3.56%
Melrose Industries (MRO) 168.15p -3.56%
Johnson Matthey (JMAT) 3,007.00p -2.94%
Sage Group (SGE) 638.00p -2.65%