FTSE 100 movers: Babcock, M&S in the black
By Michele Maatouk
Date: Wednesday 26 Mar 2025
(Sharecast News) - London's FTSE 100 was up 0.4% at 8,696.74 in afternoon trade on Wednesday.
Oil giants Shell and BP gushed higher.
BP said earlier that it has finalised a deal with Iraq to redevelop several giant oil fields in Kirkuk, in the north of the country.
The agreement is for an initial phase that includes oil and gas production of more than 3 billion barrels of oil equivalent (boe), BP said.
Defence firm Babcock gained as it said it has been awarded a five-year contract extension with the Ministry of Defence worth around £1bn.
The extension to the existing DSG Service Provision and Transformation Contract (SPTC) will deliver a comprehensive range of support capabilities for the Army in the UK with global reach.
Babcock said that through the course of the extension, it will deliver improved readiness, regeneration and asset management services "underpinned by extensive engineering and supply chain expertise".
Marks & Spencer was also in the black after JPMorgan upgraded its JV partner Ocado to 'overweight' from 'neutral' and lifted the price target to 400p from 340p.
The bank said that having been either 'neutral' or 'underweight' on Ocado since 2018, it is revisiting the investment case and has identified "several reasons to be more optimistic", as many of its previous concerns are beginning to dissipate.
FTSE 100 - Risers
Shell (SHEL) 2,841.00p 2.75%
Rentokil Initial (RTO) 355.40p 1.78%
BP (BP.) 449.65p 1.75%
Beazley (BEZ) 899.50p 1.58%
Hiscox Limited (DI) (HSX) 1,189.00p 1.54%
Babcock International Group (BAB) 743.50p 1.50%
Marks & Spencer Group (MKS) 337.20p 1.41%
Next (NXT) 9,918.00p 1.25%
Prudential (PRU) 837.20p 1.23%
National Grid (NG.) 974.80p 0.99%
FTSE 100 - Fallers
Antofagasta (ANTO) 1,880.00p -2.39%
Admiral Group (ADM) 2,838.00p -1.87%
Smiths Group (SMIN) 1,987.00p -1.63%
GSK (GSK) 1,463.50p -1.51%
easyJet (EZJ) 482.30p -1.37%
Flutter Entertainment (DI) (FLTR) 18,375.00p -1.29%
Imperial Brands (IMB) 2,704.00p -1.28%
AstraZeneca (AZN) 11,174.00p -1.25%
Standard Chartered (STAN) 1,184.00p -1.17%
Experian (EXPN) 3,584.00p -1.08%
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