FTSE 100 movers: Johnson Matthey weaker after results; Halma rallies
London’s FTSE 100 was down 0.7% at 6,338.73 in afternoon trade on Thursday.
As worries about Covid intensified, stocks with particular exposure to the pandemic and related restrictions fell. GKN owner Melrose, engine marker Rolls-Royce, InterContinental and Premier Inn owner Whitbread all declined.
B&M European Value Retail was in the red as its stock went ex-dividend.
Johnson Matthey was weaker after it reported a slump in first-half pre-tax profit as the coronavirus pandemic dented demand but said it expects a "materially stronger" second half.
B&Q owner Kingfisher lost ground even as it posted a strong rise in third-quarter sales as consumers spent the coronavirus lockdown improving their homes.
Richard Hunter, head of markets at Interactive Investor, noted that over the last year, the outperformance of the share price has been significant, with a rise of 43% compared to a decline of 13% for the wider FTSE 100.
"Quite apart from the challenges which may be yet to come, the strong performance has led to the question of whether the shares are now up with events, as evidenced by some initial profit taking in early trade, such that the market consensus of the shares remains at a hold," he said.
Going the other way, Halma was in the black after the safety equipment maker revised its full-year profit forecasts and lifted its interim dividend as order intake in the second half increased year-on-year.
Supermarket retailer Morrisons rallied after an upgrade to ‘buy’ at Goldman Sachs.
FTSE 100 - Risers
Croda International (CRDA) 6,228.00p 3.28%
Halma (HLMA) 2,421.00p 3.02%
Pearson (PSON) 638.40p 2.31%
Morrison (Wm) Supermarkets (MRW) 185.00p 2.24%
Relx plc (REL) 1,765.50p 1.88%
GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) 1,400.20p 1.85%
Hikma Pharmaceuticals (HIK) 2,593.00p 1.85%
BAE Systems (BA.) 508.00p 1.78%
Rightmove (RMV) 646.60p 1.32%
Sainsbury (J) (SBRY) 220.80p 1.05%
FTSE 100 - Fallers
Melrose Industries (MRO) 157.40p -5.12%
B&M European Value Retail S.A. (DI) (BME) 484.10p -4.85%
British Land Company (BLND) 475.80p -4.57%
Johnson Matthey (JMAT) 2,447.00p -4.04%
Rolls-Royce Holdings (RR.) 98.68p -3.82%
Land Securities Group (LAND) 679.70p -3.71%
InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) 4,464.00p -3.23%
Kingfisher (KGF) 289.70p -3.21%
BP (BP.) 244.00p -3.16%
Whitbread (WTB) 3,030.00p -2.88%