Friday Morning Markets: UK Stocks Steady as EasyJet Soars on Apollo Deal, Hays Jumps on Upbeat Guidance

The FTSE 100 is flat on Friday morning, with heavyweight stock-specific moves offsetting each other, while the FTSE 250 has added 0.4%. 

European markets are similarly subdued, with the DAX and CAC 40 both flat and the Stoxx 50 down 0.2%.

The standout story this morning is easyJet, surging 13.91% after US private equity giant Apollo Management gatecrashed the airline’s recently agreed takeover, tabling a sweetened £5.7bn proposal at £7.15 a share.

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The bid comfortably tops rival bidder Castlelake’s £6.90 offer days earlier. EasyJet’s board has indicated it will back Apollo’s terms, though a firm offer must be confirmed by August 7.

Meanwhile, Vodafone has jumped 11.29% after Emirates Telecom (e&) agreed to sell its entire 16.2% stake to Vega, an acquisition vehicle backed by French billionaire Xavier Niel’s family.

Elsewhere, Hays has leapt 11.82% after guiding full-year operating profit to the top end of the consensus range despite a soft recruitment market, with PageGroup riding the positive read-through, up 3.98%. 

Entain (+2.23%) and BT Group (+1.87%) also feature among the FTSE 100’s top risers.

On the downside, St James’s Place has tumbled 6.29% on reports of a potential adviser exodus, while AstraZeneca (-1.14%) remained under pressure following this week’s Wainua trial setback. Rolls-Royce slipped 0.81%.

In the FTSE 250, Johnson Service Group has fallen 6.68% despite confirming H1 revenue around £258m, as investors focused on continued hospitality-sector softness in its pre-close update. 

Watches of Switzerland (-2.81%) and SDCL Efficiency Income Trust (-2.37%) are also lagging

Commodities are somewhat subdued after further overnight US-Iran strikes failed to move oil markets meaningfully, with Brent down just 0.1%; spot gold has slipped 0.6% to $4,100.