THG to be demoted from FTSE 250 as Wickes enters index

Online retail specialist THG is to be pushed out of the FTSE 250 in the latest reshuffle of London’s top stock indexes.

Meanwhile, home improvement chain Wickes will be among the beneficiaries as it climbs into the index.

FTSE Russell, the global index provider run by the London Stock Exchange Group, updates the firms listed on its FTSE 100 and FTSE 250 indexes every three months.

On Wednesday, it confirmed which of the UK’s largest firms are valued highly enough to join each index based on their share value at the close of trading on Tuesday June 3.

It announced that the FTSE 100 – the index of the London Stock Exchange’s highest value stocks – remained unchanged in the new update.

However, the FTSE 250 – the index of the 250 next most valuable companies – will see a raft of changes.

It said Manchester-based online retail business THG – which was previously called The Hut Group – will be among those demoted from the FTSE 250 index.

The company has seen its shares continue a steady decline in recent months, amid continued challenges in its nutrition business, which includes the MyProtein brand.

The business, founded by Matthew Moulding, saw revenues drop by 5% last year after this weakness offset growth in its beauty operations.

THG is now valued at around £353 million, having been worth as much as £5.4 billion when it floated on the London Stock Exchange in 2021.

Elsewhere, National Express parent firm Mobico will also drop from the index after a recent fall in revenues as it undergoes a significant turnaround plan.

Bellevue Healthcare Trust, a healthcare investment firm, and mining giant Ferrexpo have also dropped from the index.

Meanwhile, home improvement chain Wickes is among those that will jump into the index.

Wickes shares have risen by more than 50% since the start of the year after reporting resilient customer demand despite pressure on big ticket spending.

It will be joined in the index by Avon Technologies, Gamma Communications and Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust.

The changes will take effect from the start of trading on Monday June 23.