Aston Martin Lagonda Share News (AML)

(Sharecast News) - London's FTSE 250 was flat at 20,356.14 in afternoon trading on Monday, with Greggs topping the second tier index's risers.

Shares in the bakery chain surged after it lifted its profit expectations for 2019 as it reported a 12.4% increase in total sales for the six weeks to 9 November.

AJ Bell analyst Russ Mould said: "Today's update suggests food-on-the-go firm Greggs is more than a one-trick pony. Having got on something of a roll with its vegan version of a pastry favourite, the company had until today stalled on a lack of earnings upgrades since the summer."

Sirius Minerals rallied after it outlined a two-stage development plan for its flagship project in Yorkshire, with the group initially looking to secure $600m funding for the polyhalite mine.

Stock in Kainos Group gained after reporting a rise in first-half profit and revenue thanks to strong momentum in its digital services business and announcing two new acquisitions.

Luxury car maker Aston Martin Lagonda was boosted by an upgrade from 'hold' to 'buy' at HSBC, with analysts commenting that the launch of the new DBX SUV could be "game changing".

Future was in the green ahead of the release of its final results on Friday, while Games Workshop continued to climb after having released an update at the end of last week in which it said trading had continued "well", with profit and sales ahead of the previous year.

Insurer Beazley was the main faller, dropping back after having racked up solid gains on Friday when it posted 12% growth in gross written premiums for the nine months to the end of September.

Finally, Schroder Oriental Income Fund also dropped after another weekend of chaos on the streets of Hong Kong pushed Asian markets downward.

Market Movers

FTSE 250 (MCX) 20,356.14 -0.01%


FTSE 250 - Risers

Greggs (GRG) 2,035.37p 14.93%
Sirius Minerals (SXX) 3.52p 10.16%
Kainos Group (KNOS) 540.00p 5.47%
Aston Martin Lagonda Global Holdings (AML) 487.95p 4.49%
Mitchells & Butlers (MAB) 443.00p 3.99%
Dunelm Group (DNLM) 818.07p 3.88%
Redrow (RDW) 624.00p 3.31%
Future (FUTR) 1,436.96p 3.08%
Games Workshop Group (GAW) 5,540.00p 3.07%
Savills (SVS) 952.00p 2.59%

FTSE 250 - Fallers

Beazley (BEZ) 544.50p -5.63%
Schroder Oriental Income Fund Ltd. (SOI) 254.98p -3.05%
Convatec Group (CTEC) 189.10p -2.90%
Hochschild Mining (HOC) 185.70p -2.62%
Genus (GNS) 3,004.00p -2.47%
Wood Group (John) (WG.) 369.70p -2.20%
UDG Healthcare Public Limited Company (UDG) 782.00p -2.19%
Clarkson (CKN) 2,725.00p -2.15%
Bakkavor Group (BAKK) 123.20p -2.07%
PureTech Health (PRTC) 240.00p -2.04%