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Important information: The value of investments can go down as well as up so you may get back less than you invest. Investors should note that the views expressed may no longer be current and may have already been acted upon. This is a third-party news feed and may not reflect Fidelity’s views.

FTSE 100 movers: Melrose retreats; Ocado boosted by upgrade

(Sharecast News) - London's FTSE 100 was down 0.5% at 7,203.55 in afternoon trade on Thursday. Melrose Industries was under the cosh as the turnaround specialist announced plans to demerge its GKN Automotive and GKN Powder Metallurgy businesses and list the new holding company.

News of the planned demerger came alongside the company's results for the six months to 30 June, which it said were at the higher end of expectations.

On an adjusted basis, pre-tax profit rose to £128m from £114, while revenue grew to £3.9m from £3.7m. On a statutory basis, the company's pre-tax loss widened to £358m from £275m in the same period a year earlier, while revenue rose to £3.6m from £3.4m.

Associated British Foods was also in the red after the Primark owner warned that adjusted operating profit and earnings per share for the next financial year will be lower than this financial year.

Ocado was among the risers after an upgrade to 'equalweight' from 'underweight' at Barclays, which cut the price target to 775p from 1,500p as it argued that risks are more evenly balanced.

"With retail sales set to improve, balance sheet concerns reduced for the time being and CFC (customer fulfilment centre) deal flow expectations tempered, we think the balance of upside and downside risks is now more evenly poised," the bank said.

FTSE 100 - Risers

Airtel Africa (AAF) 137.10p 2.24% Pershing Square Holdings Ltd NPV (PSH) 2,805.00p 1.63% Antofagasta (ANTO) 1,121.00p 1.45% Fresnillo (FRES) 710.20p 1.31% Standard Chartered (STAN) 582.60p 1.01% Rio Tinto (RIO) 4,675.50p 0.94% Ocado Group (OCDO) 739.60p 0.79% Harbour Energy (HBR) 462.30p 0.54% Dechra Pharmaceuticals (DPH) 3,196.00p 0.50% Experian (EXPN) 2,632.00p 0.42%

FTSE 100 - Fallers

Melrose Industries (MRO) 124.80p -9.34% Associated British Foods (ABF) 1,330.50p -8.56% B&M European Value Retail S.A. (DI) (BME) 339.10p -6.40% Next (NXT) 5,716.00p -5.49% Entain (ENT) 1,151.00p -4.88% Hargreaves Lansdown (HL.) 815.00p -4.14% Sainsbury (J) (SBRY) 198.60p -4.06% 3i Group (III) 1,135.00p -3.73% Tesco (TSCO) 240.60p -3.49% Kingfisher (KGF) 233.40p -3.03%

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Important information: This information is not a personal recommendation for any particular investment. If you are unsure about the suitability of an investment you should speak to one of Fidelity’s advisers or an authorised financial adviser of your choice. When you are thinking about investing in shares, it’s generally a good idea to consider holding them alongside other investments in a diversified portfolio of assets. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future returns.

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