FTSE 250 movers: Marshalls surges; Mony Group slides

FTSE 250 (MCX) 20,959.86 0.80%

Shares in Marshalls surged as the landscaping and building materials supplier held annual guidance and indicated that the contraction on sales growth had eased in the third quarter amid a weak economic backdrop.

The company on Wednesday said group revenue for the third quarter was down 3%, compared with 12% for the half year. Sales over the year to the end of September were down 9%. Marshalls shares were up almost 14% in London trade.

Landscape products revenue fell 17% to £209m on a like for like basis. The contraction rate slowed in the quarter to 13% from the 19% reported at the half year, driven by a moderation in the decline in new house building and private housing repair, maintenance and improvement end markets.

In the building products unit, sales fell 4% to £128m, with the third quarter in line with 2023, while in roofing products revenue grew marginally to £139m from £138m a year ago.

XPS Pensions reported strong trading for the six months ended 30 September on Wednesday, with revenue from continuing operations up 23% year-on-year.

The FTSE 250 company said its advisory division saw significant growth, particularly in pensions actuarial consulting, where revenue increased 17%, driven by strong client demand, service expansion, and price adjustments following periods of higher inflation.

In contrast, pensions investment consulting revenue dipped 2%, as demand normalised after two years of rapid growth.

Pensions administration revenue surged 40%, benefiting from significant project work, particularly in the public sector, new client onboarding, and inflation-driven price increases.

The board said the successful transition of clients onto XPS' proprietary Aurora administration platform was expected to enhance future operational efficiency.

It said demand for GMP equalisation services also supported growth across both pensions actuarial consulting and pensions administration.

The SIP business continued to perform well, with revenue growing 13%, driven by increased sales of SIP plans and higher client deposits.

Asset manager Ninety One declined after reporting a slight fall in assets under management in its second quarter. AuM totalled £127.4bn by 30 September, up from £123.1bn last year but down from £128.6bn at the end of June.

Mony Group reported a 2% year-on-year decline in third-quarter revenue in a trading update on Wednesday, largely due to underperformance in its travel and home services divisions.

The FTSE 250 company, which owns brands including MoneySupermarket, said total revenue for the quarter amounted to £112.9m, with growth in the insurance and cashback segments offset by weaker results elsewhere.

Insurance revenue rose 1% to £62.7m, reflecting disciplined management in a competitive pay-per-click (PPC) market.

The firm said it faced a tough comparison with the third quarter of 2023, when car insurance premiums peaked.

Shares in UK motor insurance firms fell on Wednesday, after two investigations into the sector were announced simultaneously.

The Financial Conduct Authority is opening a competition market study into premium finance, which allows people to pay for motor and home insurance in instalments.

Meanwhile, the government announced it was launching a task force intended to tackle what it called the “spiralling costs” of car insurance.

A number of bodies – including the FCA, consumer group Which? and the Association of British Insurers – have been asked to review motor insurance premiums, including identifying why costs are rising and if consumers are getting fair value.

UK motor insurance premiums have surged by an average of 21% since June 2022. The government said that was well above rises seen in many comparative European countries, such as Germany and France.

“Our new, expert taskforce is a major step forward in delivering a fair deal for drivers.”

Direct Line shares were lower on the news.

Quilter reported strong third quarter net inflows of £1.4bn in an update on Wednesday, significantly outpacing the first and second quarter levels and marking record quarterly net inflows of £1.5bn on its platform.

The FTSE 250 company said group assets under management and administration (AuMA) rose 2% to £116.2bn by the end of September, driven by strong inflows and higher market levels, partially offset by sterling appreciation.

Core net inflows for the quarter totaled £1.5bn, equivalent to 5% of opening AuMA on an annualised basis, compared to zero net inflows in the same period in 2023.

In the high net worth segment, gross flows increased to £817m, while easing outflows resulted in net inflows of £284m, a reversal from the £116m net outflow in the third quarter of 2023.

Quilter's affluent segment meanwhile delivered another strong performance, with year-on-year gross inflows rising by 50% to £3.3bn.

Lower outflows contributed to net inflows of £1.3bn, up from £151m in the third quarter of 2023, representing 6% of opening AuMA.

The company said its platform proposition saw significant growth, with gross inflows and net inflows through the Quilter channel increasing 22% and 31% year-on-year, respectively.

Independent financial adviser (IFA) channel inflows onto the platform surged 76% year-on-year, with net inflows of £821m, a substantial turnaround from the £187m net outflow in the third quarter of 2023.

Quilter recorded nearly £1.5bn in net inflows for the quarter, representing 7% of opening AuMA on an annualised basis.

Persistency levels improved in both the high net worth and affluent segments, reaching 93% and 91%, respectively.

Quilter channel productivity remained stable, with annualised gross sales per adviser at £3.1m in the third quarter.

Market Movers

FTSE 250 - Risers

Marshalls (MSLH) 351.50p 13.75%
XPS Pensions Group (XPS) 346.00p 12.34%
Moonpig Group (MOON) 246.50p 7.88%
Quilter (QLT) 150.50p 6.29%
Oxford Instruments (OXIG) 2,040.00p 5.26%
Indivior (INDV) 611.00p 4.44%
Hochschild Mining (HOC) 215.50p 4.11%
Bytes Technology Group (BYIT) 492.80p 4.01%
Endeavour Mining (EDV) 1,810.00p 3.90%
CMC Markets (CMCX) 331.50p 3.76%

FTSE 250 - Fallers

Mony Group (MONY) 199.70p -5.80%
Direct Line Insurance Group (DLG) 175.10p -3.53%
Ninety One (N91) 181.10p -3.00%
RS Group (RS1) 752.00p -2.34%
Tate & Lyle (TATE) 730.00p -2.01%
Wizz Air Holdings (WIZZ) 1,232.00p -1.91%
Aston Martin Lagonda Global Holdings (AML) 107.10p -1.74%
Renishaw (RSW) 3,350.00p -1.47%
Harbour Energy (HBR) 266.20p -1.30%
Ruffer Investment Company Ltd Red PTG Pref Shares (RICA) 271.00p -1.28%