FTSE 250 movers: Gold, oil and metal stocks gain, Mitie falls
FTSE 250 index was down 0.84% to 17,512.14 in late afternoon trading.
Technical products supplier Diploma advanced as its full-year pre-tax profits rose 4% to £54m on the back of a rise in revenue to £382.6m from £333.8m as acquisitions and currency movements provided a strong tailwind.
Gold miners Hochschild Mining and Centamin gained on the back of a bounce in gold prices as the US dollar slipped back.
COMEX-traded December gold futures were higher by 0.21% to $1,211.50/oz.
Tullow oil also edged higher due to the increase in oil futures amid growing expectations that OPEC will agree a production cut at its meeting next week.
Steel producer Evraz and copper producer Kaz Minerals rose after metal prices heated up, with copper up 2.28% although Chinese steel rebar 25mm unchanged at US$443.4 per tonne.
HSBC raised its price target for British recruitment company Hays from 110p to 150p in a note on European staffing. The UK jobs market has been more resilient than the bank expected post-Brexit vote and should inflation pick-up it believes staffers will be the key beneficiaries.
Meanwhile, Mitie fell as it delivered another profit warning after reporting losses for the first half. The facilities management group said the second half should see an improvement but the full-year turnout will still fall short of expectations. Cannaccord also downgraded the stock from ‘buy’ to ‘hold’ and cut its price target from 270p to 195p due to analysts uncertainty around its trading in 2018.
Essentra, supplier of plastic and fibre products, cut its sales and profit guidance for the year due to delays in delivering projects, a “soft” Chinese market and the slow integration of an acquisition, sending its shares lower.
Project management consultancy Atkins (WS) slumped as it got downgraded by Liberum to ‘hold’ from ‘buy’ while cutting the price target to 1,600p from 1,720p.
Telecommunications company Talk Talk was under the cosh as Redburn downgraded the stock from ‘neutral’ to ‘sell’ and its price target from 150p to 100p.
Risers
Hochschild Mining (HOC) 228.10p 3.22%
Tullow Oil (TLW) 275.10p 2.50%
Cairn Energy (CNE) 196.60p 2.13%
Metro Bank (MTRO) 3,263.00p 2.03%
Hays (HAS) 140.90p 1.95%
Centamin (DI) (CEY) 134.80p 1.82%
Evraz (EVR) 239.30p 1.40%
Kaz Minerals (KAZ) 349.10p 1.34%
Diploma (DPLM) 912.00p 1.33%
Caledonia Investments (CLDN) 2,538.00p 1.32%
Fallers
Essentra (ESNT) 396.40p -19.48%
Mitie Group (MTO) 194.00p -7.52%
Polypipe Group (PLP) 291.50p -4.99%
Atkins (WS) (ATK) 1,502.00p -4.39%
Greencore Group (GNC) 295.10p -3.60%
TalkTalk Telecom Group (TALK) 173.60p -3.44%
Inmarsat (ISAT) 697.00p -3.40%
Ladbrokes Coral Group (LCL) 120.60p -3.21%
Workspace Group (WKP) 664.00p -3.20%
Computacenter (CCC) 727.50p -3.13%