FTSE 250 movers: Workspace Group and Softcat fall sharply

London-focused office, industrial and workshop space provider Workspace Group saw a big drop in its share price on Tuesday after swing to a big loss in the first half of the year as a result of a £178m reduction in valuations.

The company reported a loss before tax of £147.9m for the six months to 30 September, compared with a profit of £35.8m profit the year before. By the end of the period, Workspace's properties were valued at £2.51bn, down 6.6% on an underlying basis compared with the end of the previous fiscal year.

Also lower was Softcat after JP Morgan downgraded its rating on the stock from 'neutral' to 'underweight', saying that the IT infrastructure and services provider's slow earnings growth doesn't justify the stock's premium valuation.

On the upside, insurer Direct Line was among the best performers of the day after analysts at Citi reiterated a 'buy' rating on the stock, pointing to "material improvements" in motor claims inflation trends for the sector since the first half.

Food producer Cranswick was also higher after saying that adjusted pre-tax profit for the year to the end of March is set to be at the upper end of market consensus as it posted a jump in interim profit and revenue amid "resilient" demand.

Energy stocks were struggling, with Harbour Energy, Ceres Power and Drax Group firmly in the red, along with energy investment firm Foresight Group.

FTSE 250 - Risers

Baltic Classifieds Group (BCG) 217.00p 3.33%
Direct Line Insurance Group (DLG) 189.75p 2.90%
Cranswick (CWK) 3,746.00p 2.80%
888 Holdings (DI) (888) 81.75p 1.93%
QinetiQ Group (QQ.) 321.20p 1.90%
Crest Nicholson Holdings (CRST) 189.70p 1.77%
Auction Technology Group (ATG) 610.00p 1.50%
Intermediate Capital Group (ICP) 1,553.50p 1.40%
North Atlantic Smaller Companies Inv Trust (NAS) 3,940.00p 1.29%
Games Workshop Group (GAW) 10,960.00p 1.11%

FTSE 250 - Fallers

Workspace Group (WKP) 546.50p -7.37%
Foresight Group Holdings Limited NPV (FSG) 404.00p -4.04%
Syncona Limited NPV (SYNC) 119.80p -3.85%
Harbour Energy (HBR) 225.20p -3.72%
Ceres Power Holdings (CWR) 212.00p -3.64%
Drax Group (DRX) 434.10p -3.58%
Jupiter Fund Management (JUP) 83.20p -3.26%
Johnson Matthey (JMAT) 1,461.00p -3.18%
Close Brothers Group (CBG) 766.00p -3.10%
Softcat (SCT) 1,262.00p -3.07%