Marks & Spencer back in FTSE 100 after share price jump

Marks & Spencer is set for a return to the FTSE 100 index in September after its share price jumped more than two thirds over the course of a year.

The high street giant officially rejoin the top tier of London listed companies on 18 September, following the quarterly index reshuffle, according to analytics group FTSE Russell.

It comes at a time of optimism for the historic retailer, which recently upgraded its profit outlook thanks to “strong trading”, having increased market share in both its clothing and home, and food, businesses.

Other retailers have flagged more challenging conditions, with inflation driving up business costs and putting consumers’ budgets under pressure.

Victoria Scholar, head of investment at Interactive Investor, said: “Despite the cost-of-living crisis with consumers feeling the squeeze, M&S has been the star performer across UK retail this year, outshining rivals with a stellar share price gain of over 75% so far this year, compared to Next for example, which is up around 17%.

“It has successfully embarked on a considerable turnaround under the leadership of Stuart Machin involving revamping its store estate and investing in technology and e-commerce.

“The analyst community are getting behind M&S’s turnaround, with several price target upgrades in August, including from Goldman Sachs, Deutsche Bank, Barclays and Credit Suisse, providing a further vote of confidence in the retail giant.”

In a statement on Linked-in CEO Stuart Machin said: "Good news for M&S today, and it’s a reflection of everyone’s hard work – but the sky didn’t fall in when we left the FTSE 100 four years ago, and it doesn’t change our priorities today.

"To be frank, it’s just another day, and we’re only as good as our customers shopping with us today tell us we are. That’s what matters, and if we do right by our customers, we’ll do right by our shareholders.

"Although we’ve made progress, there is still so much more opportunity ahead, and my mantra with everyone is to stay positively dissatisfied; always seeking to raise the bar. As a team, we are very ambitious for the future of M&S and our focus is on reshaping the business for future growth.

"So today, we’ve just got to crack on with the job and make sure we continue our positive momentum."

Shares in Marks & Spencer closed at 225.9p last night compared to 121.7p on 1 September 2022.

Main image: Marks & Spencer's latest store at Liverpool ONE.