FTSE 250 movers: Metro Bank steams upward while Sophos dives

London’s FTSE 250 was up 1.01% at 18,725.46 in afternoon trade on Friday, as Metro Bank finished off a strong week by leading the charge.

Household Goods & Home Construction

12,655.79

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0.19%

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Banks were one of the sectors most enjoying the pick up in market mood, with Metro Bank continued to rise at the end of a strong week of trading, while Clydesdale Bank, Yorkshire Bank and Virgin Money owner CYBG climbed ahead of the release of a trading update next week.

Entertainment One also made gains after a promotional video featuring Peppa Pig, the loveable cartoon pig who's show is produced by the company, went viral in China and toymaker Character Group commented on the character's brand strength in a trading update.

As housebuilders recovered from the impact of the latest RICS survey, which painted a bleak picture of the outlook for the housing market, Bovis Homes rose after it reported that it expects record profits after a significant improvement in its operational performance.

Wind farm investment company Greencoat UK Wind rose after it announced that its unaudited net asset value as at 31 December was £1.393bn, or 123.1p per share.

B&M European Value Retail crept upward after Credit Suisse reiterated its 'outperform' rating.

Cloud-enabled security software provider Sophos tumbled 20% after a nine-month trading update in which it said it expects to see a modest decline in full-year constant current billings, while JPMorgan Cazenove warned that, with billings forecasts for the 2020 financial year centred at $891m, there is a clear risk of further downgrades.

Finally, Coats dropped after it was initiated at 'equalweight' with a target price of 75p at Barclays, with analysts cautious on the fact that the outlook for top-line growth limits long-term earnings growth.

"We think Coats has a strong position in the thread market and has the potential to drive earnings from cost cutting a large opex budget (albeit this is a finite game) and providing global scale to bolt-on acquisitions (albeit M&A is challenging)," said a note from Barclays analysts.

Market Movers

FTSE 250 (MCX) 18,725.46 1.01%

FTSE 250 - Risers

Metro Bank (MTRO) 2,182.00p 5.21%
CYBG (CYBG) 196.00p 5.21%
Entertainment One Limited (ETO) 387.00p 5.05%
Bovis Homes Group (BVS) 1,000.50p 4.55%
Greencoat UK Wind (UKW) 135.00p 4.33%
Aveva Group (AVV) 2,854.00p 4.24%
Stobart Group Ltd. (STOB) 166.30p 4.07%
Premier Oil (PMO) 72.45p 3.65%
B&M European Value Retail S.A. (DI) (BME) 324.30p 3.48%
Playtech (PTEC) 419.40p 3.43%