Vodafone Drags FTSE 100 Lower; Unilever Rises

The FTSE 100 index moved lower on Monday, as shares in Vodafone Group PLC and mining stocks added pressure, while Unilever PLC’s shares moved higher after a broker upgrade.

The FTSE 100 index UKX lost 0.3% to 5,898.80, coming off a six-month high reached last Friday. The U.K. benchmark index closed out the week with a 2.1% gain as new stimulus measures from the U.S. boosted risk-on trade.

Vodafone VOD VOD weighed the most on the index on Monday, off 1.1%, after Bloomberg News said the wireless telecom firm may need to make a provision to cover a $2.2 billion tax bill in India and that the decision will be made by November. A representative from Vodafone confirmed the report.

BT Group PLC BT.A fell 2.1% as Exane BNP Paribas cut the stock to neutral from outperform.

Royal Bank of Scotland Group PLC RBS RBS gave up 1.5% as Investec Securities cut the stock to sell from hold, citing “weak ‘core’ profitability, and legacy bills to pay.”

“The [return on equity] outlook appears simply too weak to support the current valuation,” Investec analyst Ian Gordon said, in a note.

Heavyweight miners were also on the decline, as most metals prices were lower. Anglo American PLC AAL fell 1.3%, Rio Tinto PLC RIO RIO fell 0.9% and BHP Billiton PLC BLT BHP BHP slipped 0.5%.

Pointing in the other direction, Unilever ULVRUL gained 1.1%, after UBS upgraded the stock to buy from neutral. The analysts said that “for the first time, a clearly defined food strategy is being put in place that seeks to leverage Unilever’s scale … and scope … to drive sales and increase competitive advantage.”

GlaxoSmithKline PLC GSK GSK rose 1.1% as it said it submitted a regulatory application in the European Union for approval for an additional indication for its Synflorix vaccine.

Marketwatch