FTSE 100 movers: Rolls-Royce retreats; Whitbread rallies on upgrades
London’s FTSE 100 was down 0.3% at 6,321.85 in afternoon trade on Friday.
Engine maker Rolls-Royce and Primark owner AB Foods were weaker as worries about the Covid-19 pandemic returned.
On the upside, banks were on the front foot, with Lloyds and NatWest both higher.
Premier Inn owner Whitbread was in the black after an upgrade to ‘overweight’ from ‘equalweight’ at Barclays, which argued that it’s one of the most attractive recovery plays in the sector following this week's vaccine news.
The bank said it now has a greater level of confidence that 2023 can see revenue per available room (RevPAR) back close to prior levels.
Whitbread was also upgraded by Bank of America Merrill Lynch, to ‘buy’ from ‘underperform’.
"We believe Whitbread’s stronger operational leverage is favourable in the recovery, its mix is attractive (budget and domestic exposure) and we see opportunities for market share gains in the UK," it said.
FTSE 100 - Risers
Lloyds Banking Group (LLOY) 34.74p 3.81%
NATWEST GROUP PLC ORD 100P (NWG) 148.55p 3.30%
M&G (MNG) 180.60p 3.20%
Legal & General Group (LGEN) 239.00p 3.20%
Persimmon (PSN) 2,819.00p 3.07%
Rolls-Royce Holdings (RR.) 92.32p 2.58%
Whitbread (WTB) 2,751.00p 2.46%
Smith (DS) (SMDS) 328.00p 2.15%
Taylor Wimpey (TW.) 148.50p 2.10%
B&M European Value Retail S.A. (DI) (BME) 506.00p 2.02%
FTSE 100 - Fallers
Halma (HLMA) 2,436.00p -3.75%
Associated British Foods (ABF) 1,968.00p -3.20%
Compass Group (CPG) 1,360.00p -2.86%
Next (NXT) 6,670.00p -2.34%
Smith & Nephew (SN.) 1,492.00p -2.26%
Intertek Group (ITRK) 6,108.00p -2.21%
Experian (EXPN) 3,102.00p -2.18%
Relx plc (REL) 1,777.00p -2.12%
Intermediate Capital Group (ICP) 1,524.00p -1.93%
Reckitt Benckiser Group (RB.) 6,944.00p -1.92%