FTSE 250 movers: Takeover talks send Entertainment One higher

The FTSE 250 was trading down on Thursday afternoon, after a unanimous Bank of England decision to keep interest rates steady for the 85th month in a row.

Film and television distributor Entertainment One was on the up, after it was revealed that broadcaster ITV held takeover talks with the owner of the Peppa Pig franchise. The talks were exploratory, with no decision yet made, as Entertainment One confirmed during the morning that “no approach has been received”. It was also the latest chapter in ITV’s acquisitive spree under chief Adam Crozier, as the broadcaster sought out production companies to ease its reliance on television advertising.

Recruitment group Hays was also in the black after it described growth in the third quarter as “good”, with like-for-like fees climbing 4% in the three months to March despite the early Easter having a significant impact. While performance in some markets - particularly France and the US - impressed, the recruiter had a tougher time on home soil, with UK and Ireland fees falling 3%. It blamed this on a muted public sector, where fees were down 9%.

Indivior was still under pressure, after it was downgraded to a ‘sell’ rating from a ‘hold’ rating by Zacks Investment Research in a note issued overnight in the US. The specialty pharmaceutical firm traded up almost 5% in the US on Wednesday, but its London trading was markedly down on Thursday afternoon.

Another stock sliding downwards was Crest Nicholson, after it was revealed chief executive Stephen Stone sole 195,000 of his shares in a transaction dated last Friday, The stock was sold at an average price of 560p, giving the deal a total value of £1.1m.

FTSE 250 - Risers

Entertainment One Limited (ETO) 178.00p 12.23%
Hays (HAS) 133.30p 7.41%
Zoopla Property Group (WI) (ZPLA) 273.80p 3.83%
Debenhams (DEB) 80.15p 3.62%
PayPoint (PAY) 857.00p 3.25%
Allied Minds (ALM) 393.40p 3.15%
Evraz (EVR) 123.90p 2.65%
JD Sports Fashion (JD.) 1,191.00p 2.58%
Card Factory (CARD) 362.10p 2.17%
Aberdeen Asset Management (ADN) 301.40p 2.17%

FTSE 250 - Fallers

Indivior (INDV) 155.40p -6.50%
Crest Nicholson Holdings (CRST) 490.30p -5.44%
Bovis Homes Group (BVS) 836.50p -5.05%
Virgin Money Holdings (UK) (VM.) 341.40p -4.21%
Circassia Pharmaceuticals (CIR) 259.50p -4.00%
Bellway (BWY) 2,365.00p -3.74%
JRP Group (JRP) 133.10p -3.69%
OneSavings Bank (OSB) 291.00p -3.51%
Ophir Energy (OPHR) 76.00p -3.18%
Ted Baker (TED) 2,545.00p -2.97%