U.K. stocks fell on Thursday as some banks and healthcare stocks fell after going ex-dividend.
The benchmark FTSE 100 was down 29 points, or 0.4 percent, at 7,900 after losing 0.6 percent the previous day.
Healthcare stocks traded lower, with AstraZeneca declining 2 percent and GSK falling 1.3 percent on going ex-dividend.
Lender Barclays dropped 0.8 percent and Standard Chartered fell over 1 percent.
Advertising group WPP soared 4.7 percent after it forecast sales above analyst expectations in the coming year.
Défense company BAE Systems fell 2.5 percent despite reporting a rise in underlying profit and sales in FY22.
Engineering firm Rolls-Royce Holdings jumped more than 18 percent after reporting higher profit and forecasting more profit growth in 2023.
Recruiter Hays fell over 1 percent after reporting a fall in half-year profit and flagging rough conditions in its recruitment of permanent roles.
FTSE 100 Slips Amid Ex-dividend Trades
2023-02-23 09:34:40
