FTSE 100 movers: Diploma surges on guidance upgrade, M&S gains before results

(Sharecast News) - London's FTSE 100 was 0.9% higher at 8,780.67 in afternoon trade on Tuesday. Diploma surged after lifting its full-year organic revenue growth and operating margin guidance following a strong first half.

In results for the six months to the end of March, the company posted a 25% jump in adjusted operating profit to £156.9m, with revenue up 14% to £728.5m. Organic revenue growth was 9%, up from 5% in the same period a year earlier.

For the full year, Diploma now expects organic revenue growth of 8%, up from previous guidance of 6% growth, and operating margin of around 22%, up from 21%.

Smiths Group rallied as it said it now expects full-year revenue growth to be towards the top end of its guidance amid strong demand.

The company said third-quarter organic revenue growth accelerated to 10.6%, leading to organic revenue growth of 9.6% for the nine-month period.

As a result, "reflecting this strong performance and momentum in the order book", it now expects organic revenue growth for the year to be towards the top end of its 6-8% guidance range and continues to expect margin expansion of 40-60 basis points.

Centrica was also in the black after North Sea operator Ithaca Energy bought an additional 46.25% stake in the Cygnus gas field from Spirit Energy in a £116m deal.

Marks & Spencer advanced ahead of full-year results on Wednesday.

FTSE 100 - Risers

Diploma (DPLM) 4,904.00p 16.15% Smiths Group (SMIN) 2,144.00p 4.38% Sainsbury (J) (SBRY) 288.60p 2.78% Aviva (AV.) 606.00p 2.40% Lloyds Banking Group (LLOY) 77.62p 2.35% Glencore (GLEN) 269.55p 2.22% Centrica (CNA) 155.20p 2.11% Marks & Spencer Group (MKS) 368.40p 2.02% Imperial Brands (IMB) 2,810.00p 1.96% Spirax Group (SPX) 6,095.00p 1.92%

FTSE 100 - Fallers

Antofagasta (ANTO) 1,770.50p -1.64% Entain (ENT) 765.00p -0.73% Bunzl (BNZL) 2,512.00p -0.55% InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) 8,930.00p -0.51% St James's Place (STJ) 1,082.50p -0.51% The Sage Group (SGE) 1,225.00p -0.37% London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG) 11,495.00p -0.26% BP (BP.) 364.55p -0.26% Severn Trent (SVT) 2,694.00p -0.22% Unite Group (UTG) 822.00p -0.18%