Man overboard: Hedge fund drops out of FTSE 100

Date: Thursday, June 7, 2012
Author: Dan Jones, Investment Week

Hedge fund manager Man Group is to drop out of the FTSE 100 following the index’s latest quarterly review after a fresh period of poor share price performance took its toll on the company.

 The FTSE Group said yesterday evening that its June review would see just one change to the make-up of the blue-chip index, with Man, led by CEO Peter Clarke (pictured) being replaced by defence services firm Babcock as of 18 June.

 The decision was made based on closing prices on 1 June, when Man shares closed at 75.5p, having fallen some 75% since the start of 2011.

The group's shares rebounded 7.1% to 81p yesterday but remain down 36% this year as investors grow concerned over the performance of its flagship AHL strategy.

Elsewhere, Daily Mail & General Trust A shares will be removed from the FTSE 250 following their reclassification as a standard listing. Ordinary shares in the group do not meet FTSE's liquidity requirements.

Among the eight companies joining the FTSE 250 are John Menzies, Dechra Pharmaceuticals and Bank of Georgia Holdings.

Supergroup, a former favourite of Standard Life Investments' Harry Nimmo which has suffered from a series of profit warnings over the past year, is among the eight companies demoted to the FTSE Small Caps index.