London’s FTSE 100 was up 0.7% at 7,082.77 in afternoon trade on Monday.
GKN owner Melrose and engine maker Rolls-Royce were among the top gainers after FTSE 250 defence and aerospace engineer Meggitt agreed to be bought by US rival Parker-Hannifin for £6.3bn. Under the terms of the deal, Meggitt shareholders will receive 800p per share, which is a premium of around 70.5% to the closing share price on Friday.
Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell, noted that Melrose was up on positive read-across from Meggitt “given it also has interests in the aerospace and defence sector, having bought GKN in 2018”.
“It would be interesting to see if this predator becomes prey, as Melrose has historically been the one doing the bidding,” he said.
On the downside, AstraZeneca lost ground even as it said its Saphnelo lupus treatment had been approved in the US for adult patients already receiving standard therapy for moderate to severe systemic lupus erythematosus.
FTSE 100 – Risers
Melrose Industries (MRO) 168.95p 5.53%
Anglo American (AAL) 3,349.00p 4.97%
International Consolidated Airlines Group SA (CDI) (IAG) 175.74p 4.54%
Rolls-Royce Holdings (RR.) 103.76p 4.06%
M&G (MNG) 232.90p 3.33%
JD Sports Fashion (JD.) 924.40p 3.05%
Rio Tinto (RIO) 6,283.00p 2.98%
Burberry Group (BRBY) 2,124.00p 2.91%
Antofagasta (ANTO) 1,537.00p 2.84%
Royal Dutch Shell ‘B’ (RDSB) 1,456.80p 2.61%
FTSE 100 – Fallers
Pearson (PSON) 826.00p -4.99%
Smith & Nephew (SN.) 1,430.00p -2.19%
Rentokil Initial (RTO) 559.80p -1.24%
Unilever (ULVR) 4,101.50p -1.19%
Relx plc (REL) 2,089.00p -1.18%
AstraZeneca (AZN) 8,182.00p -1.04%
GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) 1,406.60p -0.79%
Fresnillo (FRES) 812.40p -0.71%
London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG) 7,440.00p -0.67%
Polymetal International (POLY) 1,553.50p -0.61%
