FTSE 250 movers: Softcat lifted by upgrade; Moonpig hit by downgrade
London's FTSE 250 was down 0.7% at 21,546.63 in afternoon trade on Friday.
Softcat was among the gainers after Berenberg upgraded the shares to 'buy' from 'hold' on the basis of its continued strong operational performance, consistent ability to beat market expectations and the circa 15% sell-off in its shares over the past two weeks.
The bank, which lifted its price target to 1,900p from 1,600p, said: "Our view on the company has always been positive; however, the shares now look more attractively valued than at our 1 October re-initiation, when Softcat traded on a 26.6x P/E and a 3.4% free cash flow yield, relative to our expectation of a 7% FY23/26 EPS CAGR.
"Today, Softcat trades on a 22.6x FY26 P/E relative and a 4.0% free cash flow yield, relative to our expectation of a 10% FY24/26 EPS CAGR."
Moonpig was under the cosh after Deutsche Bank downgraded the stock to 'hold' from 'buy' and cut the price target to 235p from 290p, highlighting "double (digit) disappointment".
Housebuilder Vistry fell after MJ Gleeson delivered a cautious outlook. The low-cost, affordable housebuilder said the housing market "lacks confidence and remains subdued".
"The board does not see a short-term catalyst for any substantial improvement," it said.
FTSE 250 - Risers
Auction Technology Group (ATG) 493.50p 3.24%
Discoverie Group (DSCV) 708.00p 2.76%
Alpha Group International (ALPH) 3,242.50p 1.81%
PayPoint (PAY) 820.00p 1.61%
Softcat (SCT) 1,660.00p 1.47%
Telecom Plus (TEP) 2,020.00p 1.41%
Raspberry PI Holdings (RPI) 476.20p 1.32%
Bytes Technology Group (BYIT) 354.20p 1.26%
Elementis (ELM) 167.60p 1.09%
Endeavour Mining (EDV) 2,284.00p 0.97%
FTSE 250 - Fallers
Moonpig Group (MOON) 223.50p -7.64%
Aston Martin Lagonda Global Holdings (AML) 80.70p -3.76%
Watches of Switzerland Group (WOSG) 374.20p -3.56%
CMC Markets (CMCX) 248.50p -3.31%
4Imprint Group (FOUR) 3,675.00p -3.29%
Vistry Group (VTY) 617.00p -3.11%
Just Group (JUST) 129.40p -3.00%
Energean (ENOG) 902.00p -2.80%
Harbour Energy (HBR) 198.10p -2.51%
Man Group (EMG) 170.40p -2.46%
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