FTSE 100 movers: Rentokil surges; Legal & General in the red

(Sharecast News) - London's FTSE 100 was up 0.9% at 8,219.56 in afternoon trade on Wednesday. Rentokil surged to the top of the index following reports that activist investor Nelson Peltz's Trian Fund Management has taken a significant stake in the pest control company.

According to sources cited by Bloomberg, the investment firm is now among the top 10 shareholders in Rentokil, which owns Terminix in the US.

Meanwhile, CNBC said a spokesperson for Trian said it was looking to engage with Rentokil's leadership on "ideas and initiatives to improve shareholder value".

Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell, said: "Peltz is likely to pursue a big shake-up of a company which has struggled in comparison with its US peer Rollins, both in share price terms and financial performance.

"Given Rentokil does a large chunk of its business across the Atlantic this could include a push to shift its primary listing to the US, which would be another blow to the prestige of London as a listing venue. Trian pursued a similar approach with Ferguson which made the move in 2022."

Legal & General slumped after it announced a £200m share buyback as it set out plans to restructure the business into three core units and promised to increase shareholder returns.

"The strategy and targets set out today signal L&G's ambition and commitment to invest to grow our business, and reward our shareholders for their support," said chief executive António Simões.

The company said it intends to return more to shareholders over 2024 to 2027, with 5% dividend growth in 2024 followed by 2% growth per annum, in addition to further share repurchases.

FTSE 100 - Risers

Rentokil Initial (RTO) 473.20p 13.97% St James's Place (STJ) 536.50p 5.61% Burberry Group (BRBY) 1,051.00p 4.11% Rightmove (RMV) 570.00p 3.15% National Grid (NG.) 885.40p 2.62% Standard Chartered (STAN) 740.00p 2.61% 3i Group (III) 3,046.00p 2.56% Intermediate Capital Group (ICG) 2,328.00p 2.56% Halma (HLMA) 2,331.00p 2.51% Persimmon (PSN) 1,478.00p 2.50%

FTSE 100 - Fallers

Legal & General Group (LGEN) 231.20p -4.90% B&M European Value Retail S.A. (DI) (BME) 479.40p -1.15% Admiral Group (ADM) 2,549.00p -0.55% Barclays (BARC) 207.95p -0.53% Smurfit Kappa Group (CDI) (SKG) 3,574.00p -0.45% Mondi (MNDI) 1,474.00p -0.30% Associated British Foods (ABF) 2,511.00p -0.24% GSK (GSK) 1,612.50p -0.15% Haleon (HLN) 320.90p -0.06% RELX FINANCE BV 3.375% GTD NTS 20/03/33 (BW73) 99.72p 0.00%