London open: UK stocks tread water at all-time high

UK stocks were flat on Wednesday morning as markets paused for breath following the new all-time highs reached the previous session.

The FTSE 100 was trading just 0.04% lower at 6,947.03 in early deals.

The index set a new closing record of 6,949.63 on Tuesday, and also reached a new intraday peak of 6,958.89.

The recent rally came on the back of an approval for Greece’s four-month bailout extension and relatively dovish comments from Federal Reserve chair Janet Yellen, who said that the central bank would still take a cautious approach to raising rates.

“Investors seem a bit hungover after all of yesterday’s excitement as the markets open flat this Wednesday morning,” said analyst Connor Campbell from Spreadex. He said there was “little current impetus” for the rally to continue.

Overnight, data revealed that China’s manufacturing sector returned to growth this month, with the HSBC purchasing managers’ index rising from 49.7 to 50.1, surprising those who had expected a fall to 49.5. A figure above 50 represents expansion.

St James’s Place leads the risers

Wealth management group St James’s Place impressed City analysts on Wednesday with a solid set of annual results, as strong cash generation led it to hike its final dividend by 50%. Operating profits on a EEV basis were 29% higher at £596.4m, well ahead of the consensus forecast of £533m.

Hospitality group Whitbread rose after saying it expects full-year results to come in at the top end of expectations after a strong fourth quarter from its Premier Inn and Costa brands.

Morrisons reassured investors with the quick appointment of a new chief executive after Dalton Philips was pushed out of the company earlier this month after five years. The company named the former head of Tesco’s Asian business, David Potts, as its boss.

First-half profits from Barratt Developments were up 74.6% at £210.2m though the stock was subdued early on, pausing after having risen by over a third over the last six months.

Electrical appliances retailer AO World plummeted after forecasting full-year results “slightly below market expectations” after a harder fourth quarter.

Market Movers
techMARK 3,149.06 -0.05%
FTSE 100 6,947.03 -0.04%
FTSE 250 17,197.10 -0.03%

FTSE 100 - Risers
St James's Place (STJ) 937.50p +5.10%
Sky (SKY) 1,002.00p +2.87%
Fresnillo (FRES) 846.50p +2.36%
Whitbread (WTB) 5,220.00p +2.25%
Mondi (MNDI) 1,339.00p +2.21%
Morrison (Wm) Supermarkets (MRW) 195.60p +1.98%
Tesco (TSCO) 242.15p +1.57%
SSE (SSE) 1,601.00p +1.33%
Meggitt (MGGT) 544.00p +1.30%
Randgold Resources Ltd. (RRS) 5,040.00p +1.27%

FTSE 100 - Fallers
Weir Group (WEIR) 1,726.00p -7.35%
GKN (GKN) 361.70p -3.19%
Standard Chartered (STAN) 927.40p -2.44%
Hargreaves Lansdown (HL.) 1,088.00p -1.81%
Tullow Oil (TLW) 395.00p -1.32%
Hammerson (HMSO) 660.00p -1.20%
BG Group (BG.) 971.40p -0.98%
Land Securities Group (LAND) 1,226.00p -0.97%
Dixons Carphone (DC.) 444.90p -0.94%
SABMiller (SAB) 3,661.50p -0.92%

FTSE 250 - Risers
Afren (AFR) 10.90p +3.81%
Petrofac Ltd. (PFC) 840.50p +3.13%
PayPoint (PAY) 891.00p +2.77%
Jimmy Choo (CHOO) 174.20p +2.47%
Tullett Prebon (TLPR) 342.50p +2.24%
Just Retirement Group (JRG) 169.50p +1.92%
Smith (DS) (SMDS) 368.00p +1.74%
Just Eat (JE.) 373.60p +1.74%
Phoenix Group Holdings (DI) (PHNX) 863.50p +1.71%
NMC Health (NMC) 528.50p +1.63%

FTSE 250 - Fallers
AO World (AO.) 204.10p -27.37%
Hays (HAS) 151.20p -5.38%
Cranswick (CWK) 1,367.00p -2.91%
Supergroup (SGP) 985.00p -2.86%
International Personal Finance (IPF) 456.00p -2.44%
Bwin.party Digital Entertainment (BPTY) 88.75p -1.93%
Drax Group (DRX) 423.10p -1.58%
Melrose Industries (MRO) 302.50p -1.56%
Countrywide (CWD) 507.50p -1.46%
Telecom Plus (TEP) 1,119.00p -1.41%