FTSE 100 movers: Pharma rallies on Morgan Stanley note, but Sage slumps

London’s FTSE 100 was up 0.3% to 6,415.44 at 1420 GMT, with pharmaceuticals pacing the advance.

Shire, GlaxoSmithKline and AstraZeneca were the standout gainers as the sector got a boost from a note by Morgan Stanley, which double upgraded AZN to ‘overweight’ from ‘underweight’ and said it was among its top picks.

The bank, which lifted AZN’s target price to 5,300p from 4,300p, said it has underperformed dramatically over the past year but looks set to reap the rewards of heavy investment, at an attractive valuation.

MS raised its price target on ‘equalweight’ rated GlaxoSmithKline to 1,450p from 1,350p, saying expectations have likely bottomed out after several years of continuous earnings per share downgrades.

Helped by JP Morgan Cazenove nudging its target price higher to 450p, Merlin Entertainments was on the front foot again following a well-received trading statement on Monday, in which the theme parks group confirmed it was likely to end the year on a stable footing. It said full year profit forecasts were expected to meet lowered expectations despite the continued significant weakness at Alton Towers since the crash on its Smiler ride in June.

On the downside, Meggitt slid as it looked set to be demoted to the FTSE 250 following the latest FTSE 100 quarterly review, the results of which will be announced after the close on Wednesday. Shares in the aerospace and defence engineer tumbled 20% in late October after it cautioned that full year profit would be well below forecasts due to a “marked deterioration” in its end markets.

Software company Sage Group was also in the red after as the stock was hit by profit-taking despite it reporting 8% organic growth for the year.

Risers

Shire Plc (SHP) 4,735.00p 2.14%
GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) 1,379.50p 2.11%
AstraZeneca (AZN) 4,591.50p 1.68%
Merlin Entertainments (MERL) 421.70p 1.61%
Experian (EXPN) 1,250.00p 1.38%
Whitbread (WTB) 4,713.00p 1.25%
Unilever (ULVR) 2,860.00p 1.24%
Marks & Spencer Group (MKS) 513.50p 1.18%
Royal Dutch Shell 'B' (RDSB) 1,680.00p 1.17%
CRH (CRH) 1,989.00p 1.17%

Fallers

Anglo American (AAL) 396.55p -2.40%
Meggitt (MGGT) 378.50p -2.20%
Sage Group (SGE) 565.50p -1.91%
Burberry Group (BRBY) 1,225.00p -1.76%
Standard Chartered (STAN) 548.60p -1.46%
GKN (GKN) 297.10p -1.33%
Rio Tinto (RIO) 2,189.50p -1.13%
Intu Properties (INTU) 324.80p -0.98%
Glencore (GLEN) 93.57p -0.96%
Legal & General Group (LGEN) 272.40p -0.91%