FTSE 100 movers: BAT gains on Jefferies note; WPP tanks

(Sharecast News) - London's FTSE 100 was up 0.2% at 8,869.58 in afternoon trade on Wednesday. British American Tobacco was the standout performer as Jefferies initiated coverage of the stock at 'buy'.

"The sector sits in the sweet spot of Staples through attractive growth, a defensive nature, rich cash returns and still-attractive valuation," Jefferies said. It said BAT was its top pick.

Persimmon was in the black after an upgrade to 'sector perform' from 'underperform' at RBC Capital Markets, while and Berkeley Group also rose after an upgrade to 'outperform' from 'underperform' by the same outfit.

More generally, the sector was in focus after seven companies agreed to collectively pay £100m to affordable housing programmes across the UK following an investigation by the competition regulator into pricing and buyer incentives.

Barratt Redrow, Bellway, Berkeley Group, Bloor Homes, Persimmon, Taylor Wimpey and Vistry have offered a package of commitments to address the Competition and Markets Authority's concerns, which includes a payment to fund hundreds of new homes - helping low-income households, first-time buyers and vulnerable people.

Advertising agency WPP tumbled after it slashed annual profit forecasts as it failed to win new clients amid a weakening economic outlook and the growing threat from artificial intelligence.

The company said it expected full-year organic revenue less pass-through costs - a main measure of its performance - to fall by 3-5% with a decline in operating margin of 50 to 175 basis points. Second-quarter revenue fell more than expected as clients cut back on spending and job loss costs fed through.

Prior guidance was for flat to down 2%, with a flat headline operating profit margin. Advertising agencies face growing competition from AI, which allows companies to design their own marketing campaigns for a fraction of the cost.

Miners Glencore, Anglo American and Antofagasta were all weaker after US President Donald Trump threatened 50% tariffs on copper.

FTSE 100 - Risers

British American Tobacco (BATS) 3,617.00p 2.52% Smith & Nephew (SN.) 1,122.50p 2.05% Rolls-Royce Holdings (RR.) 980.40p 1.45% Barratt Redrow (BTRW) 424.40p 1.43% Persimmon (PSN) 1,224.50p 1.41% Coca-Cola Europacific Partners (DI) (CCEP) 7,100.00p 1.28% BP (BP.) 388.60p 1.28% Berkeley Group Holdings (The) (BKG) 3,668.00p 1.27% Shell (SHEL) 2,636.00p 1.23% IMI (IMI) 2,116.00p 1.15%

FTSE 100 - Fallers

WPP (WPP) 445.50p -15.56% Glencore (GLEN) 299.90p -2.12% Anglo American (AAL) 2,184.00p -1.84% Fresnillo (FRES) 1,443.00p -1.77% easyJet (EZJ) 530.00p -1.67% Antofagasta (ANTO) 1,888.00p -1.64% Rentokil Initial (RTO) 337.60p -1.57% Marks & Spencer Group (MKS) 330.80p -1.52% 3i Group (III) 4,138.00p -1.48% London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG) 10,735.00p -1.24%