FTSE 250 movers: Direct Line in the red, Ithaca Energy rebounds

(Sharecast News) - The FTSE 250 remained just above the waterline in Friday afternoon trading as investors awaited Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell's speech at the Jackson Hole symposium.

Direct Line led the fallers after revealing an error in its 2023 Solvency II own funds calculation.

The company announced that its solvency capital ratio at the end of 2023 was revised down to 188% from an earlier reported 197%, though still within its risk appetite range of 140% to 180%.

Recruiter Hays also saw a decline, following its full-year earnings report on Thursday, where it highlighted a "clear slowdown" in challenging markets.

The company reported a significant drop in pre-tax profit, which fell by 92% to £14.7m, with operating profit down 46% to £105.1m.

Net fees also decreased by 12% to £1.1bn.

On the risers' side, Hiscox gained attention as it announced the appointment of Colin Keogh as interim chair following the recent passing of Jonathan Bloomer in the sinking of the Bayesian.

Ithaca Energy rebounded from losses in the previous session, where its half-year results showed a decrease in production, but it managed to achieve adjusted EBITDAX of $533m, down from $979.7m the prior year.

The company cited operational issues at non-operated joint venture sites as the primary cause for the reduction in average daily production.

Bank of Georgia continued its upward momentum after announcing a £21m share buyback programme earlier in the week.

The bank also reported an 11% increase in profits in the second quarter on Thursday, bolstered by the incorporation of Armenian bank Ameriabank into its financial results for the first time post-acquisition.

Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com.

Market Movers

FTSE 100 (UKX) 8,312.68 0.30% FTSE 250 (MCX) 21,139.41 0.16% techMARK (TASX) 4,867.55 0.14%

FTSE 100 - Risers

JD Sports Fashion (JD.) 147.60p 4.05% Fresnillo (FRES) 553.50p 1.75% Airtel Africa (AAF) 114.20p 1.42% B&M European Value Retail S.A. (DI) (BME) 444.70p 1.30% Diageo (DGE) 2,533.50p 1.26% Smurfit Westrock (DI) (SWR) 3,391.00p 1.22% Severn Trent (SVT) 2,506.00p 1.21% Lloyds Banking Group (LLOY) 58.96p 1.13% Prudential (PRU) 672.20p 1.11% Croda International (CRDA) 3,996.00p 1.06%

FTSE 100 - Fallers

Melrose Industries (MRO) 468.80p -8.26% Hikma Pharmaceuticals (HIK) 2,000.00p -0.99% Admiral Group (ADM) 2,925.00p -0.88% Sage Group (SGE) 1,008.00p -0.84% NATWEST GROUP (NWG) 343.00p -0.55% Entain (ENT) 636.00p -0.53% Ashtead Group (AHT) 5,156.00p -0.50% BAE Systems (BA.) 1,310.50p -0.49% F&C Investment Trust (FCIT) 1,034.00p -0.39% Convatec Group (CTEC) 235.00p -0.34%

FTSE 250 - Risers

Ithaca Energy (ITH) 126.90p 2.50% Investec (INVP) 567.00p 2.25% St James's Place (STJ) 719.00p 1.84% Just Group (JUST) 149.40p 1.49% Ninety One (N91) 166.10p 1.47% AO World (AO.) 115.60p 1.40% Bank of Georgia Group (BGEO) 4,390.00p 1.39% Volution Group (FAN) 537.00p 1.32% Endeavour Mining (EDV) 1,651.00p 1.29% Watches of Switzerland Group (WOSG) 409.40p 1.24%

FTSE 250 - Fallers

Hays (HAS) 94.40p -3.08% Direct Line Insurance Group (DLG) 185.20p -2.01% Wizz Air Holdings (WIZZ) 1,265.00p -1.48% Dr. Martens (DOCS) 73.85p -1.40% Renishaw (RSW) 3,580.00p -1.38% Bakkavor Group (BAKK) 153.00p -1.29% CMC Markets (CMCX) 320.50p -1.23% BH Macro Ltd. GBP Shares (BHMG) 365.50p -1.22% BlackRock Greater Europe Inv Trust (BRGE) 602.00p -1.15% Morgan Advanced Materials (MGAM) 307.00p -1.13%