LONDON MARKETS: FTSE 100 Down As Holiday Inn Parent Sags, But Experian Pops Higher

By Carla Mozee, MarketWatch

LONDON (MarketWatch) -- U.K. stocks fell Wednesday, on track for a second consecutive decline, with a pullback for InterContinental Hotels Group PLC after a ratings downgrade and a drop in shares of Johnson Matthey PLC following the company's trading update.

The FTSE 100 turned slightly lower, down 0.1% at 6,805.18, as retailers and oil and gas stocks lost ground. Shares of Wm Morrison Supermarkets PLC drifted to the bottom of the benchmark as they fell 6.1%. Shares of oil majors BP PLC (BP) and Royal Dutch Shell PLC (RDSB) were each down 1.4% as oil prices fell following a bigger-than-expected rise in crude supplies.

The FTSE 100 on Tuesday fell 0.6%, marking the benchmark first loss after eight consecutive advances.

On Wednesday, Johnson Matthey shares slumped 4.9% as investors assessed a third-quarter update from the maker of catalysts for auto exhausts. Credit Suisse noted that the company's underlying profit before taxes of 96.5 million pounds ($146.6 million) was 6% below its estimate of GBP102.8 million, while it was up 1% year-over-year.

The profit-before-taxes figure "was fine," said Numis analyst Charles Pick in a note, "but there were warning remarks regarding the [process technologies] division that mainly apply next [fiscal year]."

Johnson Matthey said it expects full-year results to be in line with expectations.

Also heading lower was InterContinental Hotels Group , with shares falling 2% after Deutsche Bank cut its rating on the company to hold from buy. Shares of IHG, whose brands include Holiday Inn and Crowne Plaza, have been trading at a premium to their European peers and to most U.S. hotel groups, said Deutsche analysts Geof Collyer and Richard Carter, in a report. "In the short-to-medium term, with the U.S. hotel cycle peak looming ever closer, we see little that can drive the rating meaningfully further."

But Experian shares were the best performing on the FTSE 100, rising 2.9% after the credit-checking services company said it plans to buy back $600 million in shares over the next 14 months in an effort to return capital to shareholders.

Anglo American shares rose 1.8% as the diversified mining company as part of its update posted a 16% rise in iron-ore production in the fourth quarter. But the company also warned that it's set to incur noncash impairment charges in full-year results stemming from the drop in commodity prices.

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