FTSE 250 movers: Plus500 rallies on results, buyback; Aston Martin hit by downgrade
London's FTSE 250 was up 0.5% at 19,015.08 in afternoon trade on Tuesday.
Plus500 was the standout gainer on the index as the online trading platform's first-half numbers came in as expected and investors welcomed news of a share buyback. The company posted a 59% slump in pre-tax profit to $63.9m as it took a hit from regulatory changes and a lack of volatility, and announced a share buyback of up to $50m.
Broker Liberum said the results were "quality", showing very lower customer churn and lower customer acquisition costs.
Going the other way, Aston Martin Lagonda was under the cosh as Credit Suisse cut its stance on shares of the luxury car maker to 'neutral' from 'outperform' and slashed the price target to 529p from 1,630p.
The bank said it was cutting its volume and pricing assumptions and its EBIT forecast for 2019 following the company's profit warning last month.
"We expect net debt/EBITDA leverage at 2.9x by end-2019. If the economic environment deteriorates further, a capital increase might be needed to deleverage the balance sheet, in our view (management clearly said that this is not planned)," it said.
It added: "The profit warning reflects weakness in demand. We believe that this does not reflect a weak brand but, rather, high UK exposure. If AML had Porsche's geographical mix, Q2 sales would be up 21% (not the reported 4%), all else equal."
Card Factory was in the red as it reported a 5.5% rise in group sales for the six months to 31 July and reiterated guidance for the year, but said costs had risen as it stockpiled ahead of Brexit.
Like-for-like sales rose 1.5% against a "challenging" consumer environment, the company said, although sales at its Getting Personal unit fell 10.5%, impacted by continued intense price competition and high costs of customer acquisition.
FTSE 250 - Risers
Plus500 Ltd (DI) (PLUS) 692.20p 21.14%
Grafton Group Units (GFTU) 685.36p 6.18%
Cairn Energy (CNE) 167.20p 4.57%
Marshalls (MSLH) 632.50p 3.69%
Intu Properties (INTU) 35.46p 3.14%
Sports Direct International (SPD) 235.80p 2.61%
Sirius Minerals (SXX) 8.32p 2.45%
Metro Bank (MTRO) 304.86p 2.37%
Amigo Holdings (AMGO) 145.00p 2.26%
IG Group Holdings (IGG) 553.00p 2.26%
FTSE 250 - Fallers
Syncona Limited NPV (SYNC) 214.02p -7.55%
Savills (SVS) 827.50p -6.02%
Aston Martin Lagonda Global Holdings (AML) 481.76p -5.72%
TI Fluid Systems (TIFS) 157.20p -4.96%
Tullow Oil (TLW) 206.60p -3.68%
Card Factory (CARD) 156.10p -3.58%
Woodford Patient Capital Trust (WPCT) 43.41p -3.54%
Future (FUTR) 974.00p -3.18%
Funding Circle Holdings (FCH) 116.40p -3.00%
CYBG (CYBG) 142.20p -2.70%