FTSE 250 movers: Metro Bank off rails, Intu increases

London's FTSE 250 index was down 0.61% at 19,692.07 in afternoon trade on Thursday, with Metro Bank leading the charge lower.

The challenger bank's shares tumbled after it said late on Wednesday that first-quarter profit halved and total deposits fell 3.6% as it lost several large customers following the discovery of a major accounting error earlier this year.

David Madden, market analyst at CMC Markets UK, said: "The group is seen as a challenger bank to the old guard. Lidl and Aldi have shaken up the UK supermarket sector, but as some established supermarkets found out, you can be over zealous in your price cuts, and end up hurting the bottom-line. Metro Bank needs to be careful they don’t become too competitive, and wind up spreading themselves too thin."

Lancashire Holdings was also off the pace as it reported a reduction in its energy portfolio at the end of the first quarter, though overall gross written premiums were up 0.6% on the year to $217.2m after what the insurer called a "relatively benign" period.

Intu Properties led the risers ahead of the release of a trading update on Friday, followed closely by Indivior, which gained after its revenue estimates of $525m-$575m and forecast for net income ranging from a $40m loss to a $10m profit came in ahead of analysts' expectations.

Shares of the anti-opioid addiction treatment developer have dropped by around 63% so far this year after being accused by the US Department of Justice of fraudulently marketing a treatment and could face fines of up to $3bn but today vowed to contest all charges and "vigorously defend itself".

Equiniti Group was also on the way up after it reported that 2019 has "started well" with a number of new client wins, leaving the services and payments specialist confident of achieving full-year expectations.

Howden Joinery gained as higher prices helped to increase revenue by 5.7% overall and by 3.9% on a same depot basis for the 16 weeks to 20 April, while Wizz Air's shares took off after the airline reported a 19% month-on-month rise in growth in passenger numbers to 3.28m.

Finally, transport services FirstGroup climbed after it made a series of changes to its boardroom, including the appointment of former Taylor Wimpey finance director Ryan Mangold as its new chief financial officer.

Market Movers

FTSE 250 (MCX) 19,692.07 -0.61%

FTSE 250 - Risers

Intu Properties (INTU) 98.64p 8.04%
Indivior (INDV) 41.05p 6.21%
Equiniti Group (EQN) 220.80p 2.70%
Howden Joinery Group (HWDN) 515.20p 2.51%
Wizz Air Holdings (WIZZ) 3,501.00p 2.04%
Pets at Home Group (PETS) 154.00p 1.99%
FirstGroup (FGP) 111.80p 1.91%
Plus500 Ltd (DI) (PLUS) 539.00p 1.89%
Great Portland Estates (GPOR) 770.80p 1.69%
Investec (INVP) 494.70p 1.69%