WINNERS & LOSERS: Tech stocks track Nvidia up, Halfords leads FTSE 250

(Alliance News) - The following are the leading risers and fallers among FTSE 100 and 250 index constituents on Thursday.

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FTSE 100 winners

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Computacenter PLC, up 4.8% at 5,467.5 pence, boosted after strong Nvidia earnings and outlook

Polar Capital Technology Trust PLC, up 1.9% at 655.5p

London Stock Exchange Group PLC, up 1.4% at 8,806p

Relx PLC, up 1.3% at 2,619p

Scottish Mortgage Investment Trust PLC, up 1.2% at 1,485.25p

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FTSE 100 losers

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Croda International PLC, down 2.7% at 3,372p, shares trade ex-dividend

LondonMetric Property PLC, down 2.4% at 190p, shares trade ex-dividend

Haleon PLC, down 2.1% at 365.6p

Games Workshop Group PLC, down 2.1% at 18,405p, shares trade ex-dividend

Diageo PLC, down 2.2% at 1,699p

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FTSE 250 winners

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Halfords Group PLC, up 9.8% at 264.5 pence, forecasts full-year guidance beat

Ceres Power Holdings PLC, up 3.2% at 415.9p

Raspberry Pi Holdings PLC, up 3.0% at 592.5p

Allianz Technology Trust PLC, up 2.6% at 703.5p

XP Power Ltd, up 2.3% at 1,843p

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FTSE 250 losers

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Zigup PLC, down 5.7% at 435p

Hays PLC, down 4.5% at 71.55p

Michael Page PLC, down 4.0% at 213.6p, shares trade ex-dividend

Dr Martens PLC, down 2.8% at 78.15p, shares trade ex-dividend

Shaftesbury Capital PLC, down 2.5% at 147.5p, shares trade ex-dividend

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FTSE 100 & 250 movers in focus:

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Halfords Group PLC, up 9.8% at 264.5 pence, 12-month range 127.6p-264p. The Redditch, England-based motoring and cycling products retailer expects between GBP55 million and GBP65 million in underlying pretax profit for financial 2027, which it says is ahead of current market consensus of GBP52.6 million. At the mid-point of the new guidance range, this would be up 32% from from GBP45.4 million reported in the 53 weeks ended April 3. Halfords says it has continued to outperform over recent months, reflecting momentum in the underlying business alongside a "very strong" performance in seasonal categories, in part reflecting unusually warm summer weather. Estimates that "this heightened seasonal demand has resulted in incremental profit in the mid-single digit millions of pounds." Adds that it now expects its performance to be further weighted towards the first half of the year as "we accelerate investment in technology and marketing in the second half". Has a trading update for the 26 weeks ending October 2 scheduled for October 21.

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Computacenter PLC, up 4.8% at 5,467.5 pence, 12-month range 2,242p-5,485p. Computacenter, an IT services provider, follows Nvidia Corp higher after the chip company reported strong interim earnings and a buoyant outlook on Wednesday. Nvidia's net income ballooned to USD59.69 billion in the three months ended July 26 from USD26.42 billion the year prior and revenue more than doubled to a record USD96.22 billion from USD46.74 billion, smashing past USD92.01 billion Visible Alpha consensus. Data Center revenue totalled USD89.02 billion, up from USD41.10 billion a year ago, and growing 18% sequentially, driven by the ramp of Blackwell Ultra infrastructure. Hyperscale revenue more than doubled from a year ago and increased 13% sequentially on the strength of Blackwell Ultra. For the third quarter, Nvidia expects revenue of USD108.0 billion, plus or minus 2%, comfortably outstripping USD103.99 billion consensus.

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Prudential PLC, down 1.3% at 1,026.5p, 12-month range 2,242p-5,485p. The London-based insurer focused on Asia says its new business profit rose 9.8% to USD1.38 billion in the six months to June 30 from USD1.26 billion in the same period a year ago. Adjusted pretax operating profit jumped 10% to USD1.81 billion from USD1.64 billion a year prior, while adjusted operating profit after tax climbed 11% to USD1.52 billion from USD1.37 billion. Basic earnings per share based on adjusted operating profit surged 18% to 58.4 US cents from 49.3 cents. International financial reporting standard profit after tax fell 27% to USD995 million from USD1.36 billion, with basic EPS declining 23% to 37.9 cents from 49.2 cents. Annual premium equivalent sales rose 4.2% to USD3.43 billion from USD3.29 billion.

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Plus500 Ltd, up 1.7% at 3,802p, 12-month range 2,942p-5,070p. The trading platforms operator announces the start of a new share buyback programme worth up to USD100.0 million. Says this is part of the USD182.5 million of shareholder returns announced in its first-half results earlier in August. The buyback will run until no later than the announcement date of its next first-half results. "H1 2026 was an outstanding period for Plus500, in which the Group delivered record results for a six-month period, reflecting the compounding quality and value of its customer base, the resilience of its global OTC and non-OTC businesses, and the enduring power of its proprietary technology," the firm says.

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By Emma Curzon, Alliance News reporter

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