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FTSE 250 movers: GVC drops on Greek tax bill, Hochschild loses its shine
London's FTSE 250 was up 0.5% to 20,621.34 in afternoon trade on Friday as investors digested better-than-expected GDP data.
Dechra Pharmaceuticals was on the up again after announcing the acquisition of two Dutch businesses on Thursday, while Kier Group continued to gain after it reassured investors the day before over its joint contracts with the now collapsed Carillion.
On the downside, HICL Infrastructure fell as it updated the market on its operations following the collapse of Carillion earlier in the month, reporting that its priority is the continuation of services to public sector clients and the users of the facilities at the affected PPP projects.
Ocado declined as RBC Capital Markets said it was among the stocks in its coverage - alongside ASOS and Zalando - that are "the most likely take-out candidates". The bank upped its price target on sector-perform rated Ocado to 525p from 320p.
It said the new PT "also reflects its anticipation for a deal being signed each year in its 10-year discounted-cash flow".
Sports betting and gaming group GVC Holdings was under pressure after saying it has made a provision of around 200m in its 2017 financial accounts after its Greek subsidiary received a 186.77m tax bill for 2010 and 2011.
Having obtained legal and tax advice, GVC said it has has "strong grounds" to appeal the assessment, which is what it plans to do. As currently there is no formal settlement mechanism, the appeal process is expected to be conducted through the Greek courts.
Berenberg said the amount of tax demanded by Greece "grossly" overstates how much GVC should owe in back taxes. It estimates that the tax-only component of the request from Greek tax authorities should be around 10m. The bank also noted that the current Greek business is licensed and that the company has been regularly paying gaming taxes on it since 2013. As a result, it argued that there is no threat to the company's legitimacy in Greece and no threat to the Ladbrokes Coral acquisition.
Hochschild Mining retreated as gold prices lost ground.
Risers
Coats Group (COA) 79.90p 7.39%
Sirius Minerals (SXX) 23.34p 3.73%
McCarthy & Stone (MCS) 148.80p 3.55%
Ultra Electronics Holdings (ULE) 1,500.00p 3.52%
JD Sports Fashion (JD.) 372.90p 3.38%
Ferrexpo (FXPO) 295.70p 3.03%
Dechra Pharmaceuticals (DPH) 2,312.00p 2.94%
William Hill (WMH) 311.60p 2.77%
Kier Group (KIE) 1,134.00p 2.72%
Hikma Pharmaceuticals (HIK) 1,021.50p 2.66%
Fallers
HICL Infrastructure Company Ltd (HICL) 140.20p -4.95%
Ocado Group (OCDO) 501.75p -3.32%
John Laing Infrastructure Fund Ltd (JLIF) 112.04p -2.91%
Kaz Minerals (KAZ) 829.00p -2.59%
Greencore Group (GNC) 207.60p -2.44%
Go-Ahead Group (GOG) 1,604.00p -2.37%
Vedanta Resources (VED) 862.20p -2.36%
GVC Holdings (GVC) 926.00p -2.32%
International Public Partnerships Ltd. (INPP) 144.50p -1.83%
Hochschild Mining (HOC) 229.90p -1.54%