London midday: Stocks stay up as Informa surges
London stocks were still firmer by midday on Monday as investors looked ahead to Chancellor Jeremy Hunt’s fiscal statement this week, with Informa surging ahead after a guidance upgrade.
The FTSE 100 was up 0.3% at 7,343.07, while sterling was down 0.5% against the dollar at 1.1773.
Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell, said: "After seeing investors pile into more risky stocks last week, today was a day for more defensive names, with tobacco, consumer goods and pharmaceutical companies in vogue.
"The risk with any sudden surge in the stock market amid headwinds such as rising inflation and higher interest rates is that it is a short-lived event.
"It’s common to see a bear market rally when stocks are down, but they often cannot be sustained. To see many stocks and shares move higher for the second week in a row is encouraging but it’s too early to declare this a bona fide recovery rally.
"There are still factors that could change investor sentiment from optimism to pessimism such as if the next inflation figures are worse than expected, and the UK government’s Autumn Statement contains some tough measures to get its finances under control."
The long-awaited fiscal statement is due on Thursday.
Investors were also mulling the latest survey from Rightmove, which showed that house prices fell last month as sellers rushed to secure deals against a backdrop of mounting financial uncertainty.
According to the Rightmove house price index, house prices fell 1.1% in November, taking the average asking price to £366,999. That compares to a 0.9% rise the month before. Year-on-year, house prices grew by 7.2%, compared to annual growth of 7.8% in October.
In equity markets, Informa was the standout gainer on the FTSE 100 as the events organiser lifted its full-year guidance, pointing to an improvement in demand.
The company now expects full-year revenue of between £2.3bn and £2.35bn and adjusted operating profit of £490m to £505m. Previously, it had guided to revenues of £2.15bn to £2.25bn and adjusted operating profit of between £470m and £490m.
Victoria Scholar, head of investment at Interactive Investor, said: "The post-pandemic return to physical events has helped spur growth for Informa with B2B demand and academic markets enjoying impressive growth.
"It continues to target the US as a key growth area with the completion of its US data business acquisition Industry Dive. Informa also continued to return cash to shareholders with over £450m of its £725m share buyback programme now completed and the resumption of its ordinary dividend.
"Shares in Informa are outperforming the market this year, gaining almost 10% year-to-date and are enjoying particularly strong gains in today’s session."
IT provider Kainos gained as it posted a jump in first-half profit and revenue amid strong underlying demand.
Beazley was in the black after RBC Capital Markets reiterated its ‘outperform’ rating on the shares and lifted the price target to 775p from 675p.
Mike Ashley’s Frasers Group slid following a report the company is close to agreeing a deal to buy Savile Row tailor Gieves & Hawkes.
In broker note action, housebuilder Redrow was knocked lower by a downgrade to ‘neutral’ at Citi, which cited a less attractive risk/reward, while Close Brothers was weaker after a downgrade to ‘sell’ at Investec.
Outside the FTSE 350, Joules was in focus as the fashion and lifestyle retailer said it had decided to call in administrators after failing to raise new funding, putting around 1,700 jobs at risk.
Market Movers
FTSE 100 (UKX) 7,343.07 0.34%
FTSE 250 (MCX) 19,482.34 -0.68%
techMARK (TASX) 4,362.10 0.69%
FTSE 100 - Risers
Informa (INF) 588.80p 6.55%
Ocado Group (OCDO) 836.40p 3.00%
BAE Systems (BA.) 734.80p 2.91%
BT Group (BT.A) 123.00p 2.67%
Admiral Group (ADM) 2,098.00p 2.54%
Imperial Brands (IMB) 2,040.00p 2.33%
B&M European Value Retail S.A. (DI) (BME) 394.20p 2.26%
Unilever (ULVR) 4,018.50p 2.01%
Airtel Africa (AAF) 122.20p 1.83%
Pearson (PSON) 954.60p 1.79%
FTSE 100 - Fallers
Harbour Energy (HBR) 352.00p -7.15%
Frasers Group (FRAS) 739.00p -6.81%
Intermediate Capital Group (ICP) 1,256.00p -2.60%
Barratt Developments (BDEV) 402.60p -2.09%
Unite Group (UTG) 952.50p -2.01%
3i Group (III) 1,271.50p -2.00%
JD Sports Fashion (JD.) 118.15p -1.95%
Persimmon (PSN) 1,332.50p -1.95%
Entain (ENT) 1,336.00p -1.84%
RS Group (RS1) 945.50p -1.82%
FTSE 250 - Risers
Kainos Group (KNOS) 1,495.00p 3.96%
Beazley (BEZ) 624.00p 2.89%
QinetiQ Group (QQ.) 342.20p 2.70%
Chemring Group (CHG) 304.00p 2.53%
Carnival (CCL) 785.00p 2.11%
PureTech Health (PRTC) 240.00p 1.91%
Hammerson (HMSO) 25.40p 1.60%
Volution Group (FAN) 357.00p 1.56%
Genus (GNS) 3,318.00p 1.41%
TBC Bank Group (TBCG) 2,200.00p 1.38%
FTSE 250 - Fallers
Ferrexpo (FXPO) 137.20p -7.42%
Bridgepoint Group (Reg S) (BPT) 231.20p -6.17%
Aston Martin Lagonda Global Holdings (AML) 150.00p -5.48%
Close Brothers Group (CBG) 1,072.00p -5.22%
FDM Group (Holdings) (FDM) 650.00p -5.11%
Liontrust Asset Management (LIO) 1,154.00p -4.47%
Hilton Food Group (HFG) 549.00p -4.02%
TI Fluid Systems (TIFS) 143.60p -3.62%
Wetherspoon (J.D.) (JDW) 486.20p -3.53%
Redrow (RDW) 454.00p -3.40%