M&S shares up slightly after makeover plan revealed

Slight gains by Marks & Spencer proved inconclusive in helping investors to decide the likely winner of the retailer’s £9.1bn (€13.6bn) takeover battle.

The high street giant was in the black after unveiling a strategy aimed at fending off an approach from billionaire tycoon Philip Green.

But the penny rise to 369p was far from the 400p it would have moved towards if a takeover was on the cards.

By mid-morning the FTSE 100 Index stood 12.7 points lower at 4380.5 after shaking off moderate gains made at the end of last week.

Analysts said traders would be keeping a close eye on data due for release today, including factory gate prices in the UK.

The session’s highest blue-chip riser was supermarket Morrisons, which added nearly 2% or 3.75p to 194.75p, as it recovered from the impact of its recent profits warning.

Also in the retail sector, Iceland-to-Booker group Big Food was 1% higher despite saying fierce competition in the retail sector led to a continuing decline in sales. Shares in the FTSE 250 stock improved 0.75p to 89.75p.

Those dragging the top flight down included oil giants BP and Shell as the price of a barrel of crude fell back below the 40 US dollar mark in New York. BP was off 4.5p to 492.5p while Shell slipped 0.75p to 402.75p.

Back outside the top flight, easyJet shares hit at an all-time low after founder Stelios Haji-Ioannou dismissed reports he was about to take the company private. Shares weakened 5.5p to 144.5p.

In contrast, property company Minerva saw its share price rocket 28% – 70.25p to 316p – after confirming it had received a takeover approach.

And shares in set-top box maker Pace Micro surge 12%, up 6p to 54p, after the group confirmed a return to the black.