FTSE 100 movers: NatWest rallies on results; IG tumbles on acquisition

31st Jul 2026 14:42

(Sharecast News) - London's FTSE 100 was down 0.3% at 10,864.19 in afternoon trade on Friday.

NatWest shot to the top of the index as it reported strong half-year earnings driven by a jump in net interest income.

Profit for the half year to 30 June rose 19% to £3.1bn with net interest income up 12% to £6.9bn. The bank said it was expecting a return on tangible equity of more than 19% for the full year and would consider share buybacks from full year 2026, six months earlier than previously planned.

Sainsbury's was also in the black after agreeing to sell Argos to newly-formed retail vehicle Swift Partners - whose shareholders include former Co-op Group CEO Richard Pennycook - for £120m.

Oil giant Shell was up as it said it was selling its wholly-owned subsidiary BG Cyprus Limited to Hungary's MOL Group for up to $720m.

BP gained as it launched a process for the potential sale of its North Sea business. It said the decision forms part of its ongoing portfolio review and reflects its "disciplined approach to capital allocation" as it looks to create a "simpler, stronger and more valuable company".

On the downside, IG Group tumbled after announcing late on Thursday that it had agreed to buy US daily fantasy sports and prediction markets ​operator Underdog for up ​to $1.3bn.

Melrose Industries was under the cosh after saying it expects to take a hit of between £25m and £30m in the second half after an incident at its Garden Grove facility in California.

As well as the exceptional costs relating to the incident, Melrose highlighted the financial impact from operating at reduced capacity. The engineer and owner of GKN Aerospace also said it has decided to pause the current £175m share buyback programme pending clarification of the impact of the incident.

Pearson fell even as the educational publisher said it remained on track to meet its 2026 guidance, driven by strong growth in its virtual learning division and rising demand for its artificial intelligence-powered study tools in the US.

FTSE 100 - Risers

NATWEST GROUP (NWG) 714.60p 4.33%

Sainsbury (J) (SBRY) 361.10p 1.91%

Shell (SHEL) 3,383.50p 1.88%

3i Group (III) 2,899.00p 1.83%

Scottish Mortgage Inv Trust (SMT) 1,338.00p 1.83%

BAE Systems (BA.) 2,087.00p 1.80%

Anglo American (AAL) 3,791.00p 1.77%

Pershing Square Holdings Ltd NPV (PSH) 3,788.00p 1.72%

Alliance Witan (ALW) 1,352.00p 1.65%

BP (BP.) 551.30p 1.60%

FTSE 100 - Fallers

IG Group Holdings (IGG) 1,514.00p -11.31%

Melrose Industries (MRO) 453.40p -4.67%

JD Sports Fashion (JD.) 90.12p -3.36%

Vodafone Group (VOD) 116.50p -2.47%

Pearson (PSON) 1,258.00p -2.43%

Experian (EXPN) 2,826.00p -2.42%

Entain (ENT) 539.80p -2.22%

Airtel Africa (AAF) 332.80p -2.18%

Unilever (ULVR) 4,750.00p -1.97%

Relx plc (REL) 2,622.00p -1.83%