Source: Sharecast
Shares in Phoenix Group slumped despite the retirement and savings business reporting a seemingly solid first-half report, as investors banked profits following a solid run in the stock so far this year.
The company, which said it was "firmly on track" to hit its medium-term targets after a strong first half, also announced that it is to change its group name to Standard Life in March 2026, "helping with our objective to simplify our business". Standard Life was acquired in 2018.
On the upside, Marks & Spencer was the top gainer after Citi upgraded the retailer to ‘buy’ from ‘neutral’ and lifted the price target to 440p from 380p as it said structural tailwinds are underappreciated.
"With the shares 18% below pre-Cyber levels, we see an attractive entry point for a business with good underlying momentum," it said.
Citi said that in Fashion, app and survey data suggest M&S is gaining share with younger customers. The bank said its proprietary model implies this can add around 1.5 percentage points to its like-for-like sales per year.
In Food, meanwhile, Citi said its modelling suggests a larger mix of ‘bigger baskets’ is driving share gains as M&S benefits from trade down from restaurants.
"These tailwinds leave M&S well placed to outperform amid any UK macro uncertainty, and should add circa 4-5pp to LFLs per annum," it said. "Looking beyond Cyber, we believe FX gross margin tailwinds and modest operating leverage will drive margin expansion to exceed M&S’s CMD targets."
The bank said its new estimates are 7%/13% above Visible Alpha consensus for FY27e/FY28e adjusted pre-tax profit.
FTSE 100 - Risers
Marks & Spencer Group (MKS) 354.40p 3.57%
Entain (ENT) 886.40p 2.55%
Croda International (CRDA) 2,520.00p 2.23%
Fresnillo (FRES) 2,164.00p 2.17%
JD Sports Fashion (JD.) 96.30p 1.95%
Weir Group (WEIR) 2,572.00p 1.58%
Diploma (DPLM) 5,490.00p 1.57%
3i Group (III) 3,979.00p 1.45%
Standard Chartered (STAN) 1,385.50p 1.43%
Barratt Redrow (BTRW) 373.10p 1.41%
FTSE 100 - Fallers
Phoenix Group Holdings (PHNX) 626.00p -6.57%
Airtel Africa (AAF) 216.60p -2.08%
Diageo (DGE) 1,993.00p -2.02%
M&G (MNG) 256.00p -1.77%
Unilever (ULVR) 4,708.00p -1.28%
Games Workshop Group (GAW) 15,150.00p -1.24%
AstraZeneca (AZN) 11,962.00p -1.06%
Coca-Cola HBC AG (CDI) (CCH) 3,748.00p -0.85%
GSK (GSK) 1,465.00p -0.75%
Haleon (HLN) 363.00p -0.74%
