FTSE 250 movers: Saga slides, CYBG climbs

London's FTSE 250 inched 0.09% lower to 19,294.35 in afternoon trading on Wednesday, with Saga leading the index downwards.

Real Estate Investment & Services

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The over-50s products specialist saw its shares drop sharply as it said it was making good progress with its new fixed price motor insurance but cautioned that conditions in its travel and insurance markets are "challenging".

Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell, said: "Saga is having a hard job digging itself out of a massive hole. Having issued several profit warnings in the past few years, changed its insurance strategy, and announced plans to part ways with its chief executive, the business has come back with a patchy trading update. In its defence, the turnaround plan is still fairly new and it will take time to see if the strategy works."

Ted Baker was also knocked lower after analysts at HSBC downgraded the stock to 'hold' and more than halved its target price from 1,900p to 900p following the retailer's profit warning earlier this month.

At the other end of the stick, CYBG advanced as the owner of the Yorkshire Bank and Clydesdale Bank announced that it will rebrand as Virgin Money by the end of 2021 and said it was targeting an additional £50m of annual net cost savings on top of existing £150m annual savings form the Virgin Money deal.

Analysts from Shore Capital said: "While the broader operating environment for CYBG may be challenging due to competitive pressure and an uncertain macro-economic backdrop, we think CYBG is in a relatively well positioned to navigate this given the protection afforded to its bottom line from the significant merger and transformation cost savings that have been identified and its strong capital position. We remain of the view that the group is significantly undervalued."

Finally, construction and property group Kier racked up strong gains, having taken a beating earlier in the month on the back of a profit warning, while Safestore dropped after analysts at Merrill Lynch cut the stock to 'neutral'.

Market Movers

FTSE 250 (MCX) 19,294.35 -0.09%

FTSE 250 - Risers

CYBG (CYBG) 195.20p 5.26%
Kier Group (KIE) 125.40p 4.59%
John Laing Group (JLG) 384.20p 3.17%
Telecom Plus (TEP) 1,526.00p 2.97%
Euromoney Institutional Investor (ERM) 1,266.00p 2.93%
William Hill (WMH) 142.75p 2.88%
Capita (CPI) 104.75p 2.70%
Stobart Group Ltd. (STOB) 107.80p 2.47%
TP ICAP (TCAP) 294.10p 2.26%
Renishaw (RSW) 3,902.00p 2.25%