FTSE 250 movers: Leisure and transport names pace gains

Leisure related stocks powered Thursday's 3.44% advance on the FTSE 250 to 16,407.92.

Hyve Group and Cineworld, two of the most beaten down issues on the second-tier index in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic paced gains, alongside big gains for domestic transport names such as National Express and Stagecoach.

In the background, investors and analysts were still trying to figure how much further the recent rally in markets had to run and whether or not it would turn out to be just a so-called 'bear market' rally.

For analysts at JP Morgan, it would take three more weeks to know with greater certainty.

"The next three weeks should determine whether this preference for higher-quality credit was too hasty (because all markets will reverse lower), too tame (because all markets will continue retracing higher) or about right (because paths will not be synchronized)," JP Morgan said.

"The general concern is the likelihood of even worse activity data in April plus an earnings season wildcard. The specific concern is whether infection curves flatten enough to allow meaningful relaxation of lockdowns and resumptions of activity this spring.

"For the next month and into 2021, the Roadmap for Entering and Exiting COVID-19 proposes a hypothetical, phase-by-phase schedule covering Staggered Openings, Return to Normal (or Never-normal) and Preparation for the Next Crisis. Mass vaccinations seem a precondition for Return to Normal, which is why different letters (V, U and L) will need to be applied to different economies and markets when projecting paths over the next year or two."

Precious metals names, including Petropavlovsk and Hochschild Mining, also put in big gains as the prices of the underlying metals that they mined broke higher.

Market Movers

FTSE 250 (MCX) 16,407.92 3.44%

FTSE 250 - Risers

Hyve Group (HYVE) 28.50p 35.57%
Cineworld Group (CINE) 77.24p 27.42%
Elementis (ELM) 62.95p 22.23%
Capita (CPI) 39.64p 20.01%
Network International Holdings (NETW) 430.80p 16.43%
National Express Group (NEX) 258.60p 15.86%
Stagecoach Group (SGC) 86.80p 14.21%
Just Eat Takeaway.Com N.V. (CDI) (JET) 7,558.00p 13.96%
Watches of Switzerland Group (WOSG) 257.50p 12.94%
William Hill (WMH) 106.40p 12.64%

FTSE 250 - Fallers

BMO Commercial Property Trust Limited (BCPT) 80.00p -4.86%
Aston Martin Lagonda Global Holdings (AML) 70.05p -4.43%
3i Infrastructure (3IN) 250.00p -3.85%
Spirent Communications (SPT) 225.50p -3.63%
Avast (AVST) 389.40p -3.28%
Greggs (GRG) 1,791.00p -3.14%
Syncona Limited NPV (SYNC) 231.50p -2.73%
Just Group (JUST) 54.20p -2.61%
Marston's (MARS) 41.28p -2.55%
Grafton Group Units (GFTU) 605.00p -2.42%