FTSE 250 movers: Halfords drops on CEO exit, Zoopla hit by downgrade

Halfords Group was falling after the boss of the car- and bike-parts retailer Matt Davies left for Tesco as the supermarket's board attempts to turn around the business. Investec labelled the departure as "disappointing" given that Davies was the "architect of [Halfords'] recovery strategy".

Zoopla's shares dropped sharply after the online property portal received a downgrade from broker Exane BNP Paribas from 'neutral' to 'underperform'. The company also reported its annual report which revealed that chief executive Alex Chesterman’s pay package was more than £499,000 last year.

The mining sector was mixed with Kaz Minerals and BlackRock World Mining Trust on the rise. Centamin, however, declined after missing analysts' forecasts with its 2015 gold production guidance.

Howden Joinery was a high riser after releasing an unscheduled trading statement saying that full-year expected profits would beat market expectations.

FTSE 250 - Risers
Howden Joinery Group (HWDN) 415.50p +5.94%
Nostrum Oil & Gas (NOG) 447.20p +4.32%
Kaz Minerals (KAZ) 258.90p +4.27%
BlackRock World Mining Trust (BRWM) 320.70p +3.85%
Michael Page International (MPI) 419.00p +3.53%
Ted Baker (TED) 2,337.00p +3.41%
Ocado Group (OCDO) 403.20p +3.31%
Restaurant Group (RTN) 687.00p +3.00%
Bwin.party Digital Entertainment (BPTY) 112.80p +2.92%
Worldwide Healthcare Trust (WWH) 1,750.00p +2.88%

FTSE 250 - Fallers
Halfords Group (HFD) 429.50p -7.14%
Zoopla Property Group (WI) (ZPLA) 183.00p -5.03%
Centamin (DI) (CEY) 62.05p -4.24%
AO World (AO.) 261.70p -3.50%
Dairy Crest Group (DCG) 471.00p -3.29%
Paragon Group Of Companies (PAG) 409.80p -2.36%
Diploma (DPLM) 702.50p -2.29%
Bank of Georgia Holdings (BGEO) 2,142.00p -2.01%
Workspace Group (WKP) 765.00p -1.92%
Supergroup (SGP) 778.00p -1.83%