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(Alliance News) - Stock prices in London opened higher on Tuesday with Phoenix Group leading the FTSE 100, while recently demoted Darktrace gained after raising annual revenue guidance.
The UK flagship index was up 37.78 points, or 0.5%, at 7,483.03 early Tuesday. The mid-cap FTSE 250 index was up 179.03 points, or 0.8%, at 23,180.84. The AIM All-Share index was up 5.58 points, or 0.4%, at 1,175.85.
The Cboe UK 100 index was up 0.4% at 742.92. The Cboe 250 was up 0.6% at 20,691.36 and the Cboe Small Companies up 0.1% at 15,542.75.
In Paris the CAC 40 stock index was up 0.9%, while the DAX 40 in Frankfurt was 0.3% lower.
In the FTSE 100, Phoenix Group Holdings was the best performer, up 4.0%, after the closed life funds consolidator said it completed GBP4.0 billion of bulk purchase annuity transactions in the second half of 2021.
The London-based company said it completed four bulk purchase annuity transactions comprising of GBP3.6 billion of external deals and a further GBP400 million tranche of the group's Pearl Pension Scheme.
Phoenix said this equates to total bulk purchase annuity premiums of GBP5.5 billion contracted for the year. This has more than doubled when compared to its 2020 figure of GBP2.5 billion.
As a result, Phoenix said it now expects to deliver in excess of GBP1 billion of total new business long-term cash generation for 2021 which it added will more than offset a GBP800 million run-off of the in-force business.
Flutter Entertainment was up 3.5% after Citigroup double-upgraded the gambling company to Buy from Sell.
Dechra Pharmaceuticals was up 3.0%. The veterinary products company said it has agreed terms with Anivive Lifesciences to acquire the worldwide rights to verdinexor, used to treat of all forms and stages of canine lymphoma in dogs.
Under the terms of the agreement, Dechra will acquire the global product rights and a first right of refusal for other species along with the trademark Laverdia.
At the other end of the large-caps, NatWest was the worst performer, down 0.9%, after Jefferies downgraded the state-backed lender to Hold from Buy.
In the FTSE 250, Darktrace was the standout performers, up 21%. The stock, which was demoted from the FTSE 100 in December, is now up almost 90% from its April listing price.
The cybersecurity firm said it continued to deliver strong growth across its customer base in the first half as it raised annual guidance.
In a trading update for the six months to December 31, Darktrace reported 40% growth in number of customers - adding 6,531 customers in the period.
Looking ahead, Darktrace now expects annual recurring revenue for financial 2022 to rise by between 37% and 38.5%, up from previous guidance of 34% to 36%. Further, net revenue is set to grow by 42% to 44%, up from 37% to 39% previously guided.
At the other end of the midcaps, Games Workshop was the worst performer, down 3.0%. The fantasy wargames company said it was on the "front foot" following its half-year performance as it hailed the resilience of the Warhammer hobby, for which it makes and sells figurines.
For the six months to November 28, revenue was GBP191.5 million, up 2.5% from GBP186.8 million the year before, though pretax profit was GBP88.2 million, down 3.7% from GBP91.6 million.
Looking ahead, Games Workshop said it was mindful of the uncertainty caused by Covid-19 and the expectation of more growth given its recent performance, but said it continued to trade in line with expectations.
On AIM, Vianet, which offers sales monitoring devices, announced a three-year contract with Italian coffee maker Lavazza. Vianet will provide services to 3,000 units in Lavazza Professional UK's managed estate, while having access to a further 10,000 coffee machines. Vianet shares were up 7.3%.
In Asia on Tuesday, the Japanese Nikkei 225 index closed down 0.9% - Tokyo reopening after being closed Monday for a holiday. In China, the Shanghai Composite ended down 0.7%, while the Hang Seng index in Hong Kong lost 0.2%. The S&P/ASX 200 in Sydney closed down 0.8%.
The pound was quoted at USD1.3602 early Tuesday, up from USD1.3567 at the London equities close Monday.
The euro was priced at USD1.1344, higher against USD1.1327 late Monday. Against the Japanese yen, the dollar was trading at JPY115.27, up from JPY115.14.
Brent oil was quoted at USD81.43 a barrel Tuesday morning, up from USD81.26 at the London equities close on Monday. Gold stood at USD1,808.40 an ounce, rising from USD1,795.34.
By Arvind Bhunjun; arvindbhunjun@alliancenews.com
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