FTSE 250 movers: Johnson Matthey, Shaftesbury in the black

(Sharecast News) - London's FTSE 250 was down 0.1% at 18,438.87 in afternoon trade on Monday. Johnson Matthey surged as Bank of America Merrill Lynch upgraded the shares to 'buy' from 'underperform' and hiked the price target to 2,000p from 1,600p as it argued the company has a far better cash flow profile than its valuation discounts.

"We believe Johnson Matthey (MAT) can extract more value than we previously thought from its Clean Air franchise thanks to management's cost cutting efforts," BofA said.

"We also see encouraging signs that it can generate new revenue streams in its Catalyst Tech business."

West End landlord Shaftesbury also gained as it hailed a strong start to the Christmas trading period, with footfall high and sales tracking above the prior year.

The company said customers reported sales up 12% on 2022 levels and 16% above 2019 levels.

It pointed to "sustained" demand across all uses. Shaftesbury said leasing activity in the second half totalled 220 transactions, representing £15.6m of rent, 6% ahead of 30 June 2023 ERV.

FTSE 250 - Risers

Shaftesbury Capital (SHC) 121.30p 4.21% Johnson Matthey (JMAT) 1,601.00p 3.56% Dr. Martens (DOCS) 111.20p 2.49% Centamin (DI) (CEY) 92.30p 2.38% Digital 9 Infrastructure NPV (DGI9) 43.05p 1.89% Howden Joinery Group (HWDN) 715.40p 1.65% TBC Bank Group (TBCG) 2,800.00p 1.63% Hilton Food Group (HFG) 720.00p 1.55% Tritax Eurobox (GBP) (EBOX) 56.10p 1.45% Workspace Group (WKP) 545.00p 1.40%

FTSE 250 - Fallers

888 Holdings (DI) (888) 76.50p -4.67% Ceres Power Holdings (CWR) 190.00p -2.76% FDM Group (Holdings) (FDM) 398.50p -2.69% Ithaca Energy (ITH) 155.50p -2.32% Virgin Money UK (VMUK) 143.00p -2.09% Chemring Group (CHG) 312.50p -2.04% Indivior (INDV) 1,282.00p -1.99% Coats Group (COA) 68.20p -1.73% HGCapital Trust (HGT) 403.00p -1.71% FirstGroup (FGP) 163.40p -1.68%