FTSE 250 movers: Ocado surges; Genuit slumps
FTSE 250 (MCX) 24,179.14 -0.82%
Ocado surged on Tuesday as JPMorgan upped its price target on the stock to 460p from 290p and reiterated its ‘overweight’ rating, saying that operational momentum continues to build and there are several catalysts ahead.
"We continue to be excited about the Ocado investment case given ongoing momentum in the turn-around story with several drivers for a sustained re-rating from here," the bank said. It argued that the pipeline of five new customer fulfilment centre ramp-ups scheduled for 2027-2029 is largely de-risked, providing visibility into Technology Solutions revenue growth.
Wickes shares outperformed a weaker UK market on Tuesday as the DIY and building trade supplier reported a 4% rise in third-quarter revenues driven by strong growth in retail trading, although it said there some prices were rising slightly.
Revenue for the three months to September 26 came in at £439m with retail sales up 6% to £331m. The company still expects adjusted pre-tax earnings of £52.8m-£56.0m according to its own compiled consensus of analysts’ forecasts. Shares in the company were up more than 4% in early London trade.
Genuit tumbled on Tuesday after the provider of sustainable water and climate products warned that full-year profits would miss market expectations amid ongoing challenging market conditions.
In an update for the nine months to 30 September, the company said revenue rose 3.5% on the same period a year earlier on a reported basis, to £464.5m, but was down 4.3% on a like-for-like basis.Genuit said this demonstrates "resilience in a market where material volume headwinds have been created by macroeconomic conditions including anticipated interest rate increases".
Shares in recruitment firms Michael Page and Hays both fell as official data showed job vacancies fell by an estimated 2.9% quarter-on-quarter in the three months to September, as small firms opted to hold back on hiring amid higher costs. It was the largest fall since the start of the year.
Ocado Group (OCDO) 339.60p 6.87%
Wickes Group (WIX) 224.50p 4.41%
Trainline (TRN) 223.40p 3.59%
Wetherspoon (J.D.) (JDW) 1,070.00p 2.10%
FirstGroup (FGP) 207.80p 1.96%
Harbour Energy (HBR) 301.80p 1.75%
Premier Foods (PFD) 203.20p 1.75%
Trustpilot Group (TRST) 281.00p 1.74%
Taylor Wimpey (TW.) 77.32p 1.50%
Keller Group (KLR) 3,186.00p 1.46%
FTSE 250 - Fallers
Genuit Group (GEN) 256.20p -11.60%
Ceres Power Holdings (CWR) 272.00p -9.58%
THG (THG) 33.90p -8.43%
RHI Magnesita N.V. (DI) (RHIM) 2,605.00p -6.13%
Michael Page (PAGE) 187.20p -4.64%
Hays (HAS) 54.90p -4.52%
Seraphim Space Investment Trust (SSIT) 179.20p -4.17%
Renishaw (RSW) 5,190.00p -3.98%
Morgan Advanced Materials (MGAM) 264.50p -3.82%
Pan African Resources (PAF) 113.50p -3.40%