FTSE 100 movers: Housing stocks make gains

9th Jun 2014 14:49

Housing stocks were in demand today amid speculation that the government could soon announce measures to incentivise building on brownfield sites across the UK.Barratt Developments led the sector higher, with last week's announcement that the government is set to boost housing supply in the UK amid rampant house-price inflation also helping to boost sentiment. Sports Direct was a strong riser following the news the group has convened a meeting to attempt to pass-through a controversial new bonus scheme which involves founder Mike Ashley receiving a payout. The announcement comes after the board's failure to win backing for a bonus scheme in April that would have seen Ashley individually pocket £73m in shares, Sports Direct has this time included the billionaire entrepreneur in a new proposal which involves "all eligible employees".Supermarket rivals Wm Morrison and Tesco were on the rise today as both stocks rebounded after some heavy falls last week.Land Securities moved higher after Liberum Capital increased its target price from 1,097p to 1,124p.Meanwhile, Lloyds Banking Group lead the downside after confirming an offer price of 220p-290p for its 25% stake in TSB. At the mid-point of the price range, TSB's market capitalisation would be approximately £1.275bn, well below book value of £1.6bn.Other financial stocks such as St James's Place, Aviva and Aberdeen Asset Management were all trading lower.Panmure Gordon has cut its rating for temporary power and temperature control services firm Aggreko from 'buy' to 'hold', prompting shares to fall. The stock's valuation - trading at 20.2 times 2014 estimated earnings - "looks up with events to us given the limited extent of earnings per share growth", the broker said.FTSE 100 - RisersBarratt Developments (BDEV) 373.90p +1.99%Sports Direct International (SPD) 825.50p +1.54%Johnson Matthey (JMAT) 3,310.00p +1.22%Tesco (TSCO) 293.95p +1.17%ARM Holdings (ARM) 907.50p +1.17%SSE (SSE) 1,574.00p +1.16%Royal Bank of Scotland Group (RBS) 342.50p +1.15%Morrison (Wm) Supermarkets (MRW) 195.00p +1.04%United Utilities Group (UU.) 894.50p +1.02%Antofagasta (ANTO) 780.00p +0.97%FTSE 100 - FallersLloyds Banking Group (LLOY) 78.86p -1.61%William Hill (WMH) 346.80p -1.22%St James's Place (STJ) 817.00p -1.21%Whitbread (WTB) 4,300.00p -1.15%Aberdeen Asset Management (ADN) 457.30p -1.02%Rexam (REX) 531.00p -0.93%Aggreko (AGK) 1,672.00p -0.89%Bunzl (BNZL) 1,675.00p -0.89%Rolls-Royce Holdings (RR.) 1,067.00p -0.84%National Grid (NG.) 842.50p -0.71%NR