FTSE 250 movers: Clarkson surges, Spectris slips

London's FTSE 250 index was up 0.80% at 18,949.26 in afternoon trade on Tuesday, as Clarkson pulled the index upwards.

The shipping services provider was the top gainer after non-executive director Peter Backhouse bought 1,000 shares at 2,300p.

Crest Nicholson shares also rose, after the homebuilder said it had poached Peter Truscott from construction group Galliford Try to be its new chief executive, as well as giving investors an update on trading, while Sanne Group climbed after Berenberg analysts reiterated a 'buy' rating, praising its "high organic growth, high margins, strong revenue visibility and a robust balance sheet."

"Sanne continues to benefit from the strong regulatory and economic drivers behind the growth of the alternative asset market and the requirement for outsourced administration. Looking forward, we expect FY19 organic growth of approximately 11%," said a note from Berenberg.

Medical equipment maker Convatec surged after Sweden's Dagens Industri reported that Swedish private equity group EQT may consider a bid for the company.

Spectris was the top faller after being hit by a downgrade to 'sell' at Goldman Sachs, where analysts argued that recent developments in the instrumentation company’s markets and its FY18 results do not warrant its 15% share price increase year to date.

"While we see positives in new management’s restructuring plan, we believe any near-term benefits are likely to be offset by slowing growth, an uncertain capex backdrop and cost inflation," said a note from the analysts.

Retirement income specialist Just Group was lower after it raised £375m in gross proceeds through the sale of £300m-worth of perpetual bonds rated BBB- and offering annual interest of 9.375%, alongside £75m-worth of new equity at a price of 80p per share.

Galliford was weaker on previously mentioned news that Truscott had stepped down as chief executive with immediate effect, to be succeeded by current group finance director Graham Prothero.

Finally, Amigo Holdings was also lower after RBC Capital Markets cut the stock's target price from 345p to 330p, while IP Group fell after the release of its full-year results, as it disclosed a "disappointing" performance for 2018.

Market Movers

FTSE 250 (MCX) 18,949.26 0.80%

FTSE 250 - Risers

Clarkson (CKN) 2,365.00p 7.01%
Crest Nicholson Holdings (CRST) 371.20p 5.16%
Sanne Group (SNN) 537.00p 4.88%
Contour Global (GLO) 176.40p 4.69%
Convatec Group (CTEC) 140.10p 4.63%
Intermediate Capital Group (ICP) 1,085.00p 4.33%
Premier Oil (PMO) 90.25p 4.15%
Elementis (ELM) 163.90p 3.80%
Domino's Pizza Group (DOM) 241.70p 3.60%
Jupiter European Opportunities Trust (JEO) 733.00p 3.53%

FTSE 250 - Fallers

Spectris (SXS) 2,506.00p -3.24%
Computacenter (CCC) 1,085.19p -2.93%
Just Group (JUST) 64.85p -2.85%
Sophos Group (SOPH) 298.80p -2.48%
Galliford Try (GFRD) 669.50p -2.41%
Amigo Holdings (AMGO) 158.40p -2.22%
Ted Baker (TED) 1,579.00p -1.99%
IP Group (IPO) 88.90p -1.77%
Acacia Mining (ACA) 200.20p -1.67%
Plus500 Ltd (DI) (PLUS) 721.00p -1.37%