London's FTSE 100 hits new peak as Schroders soars on buyout

‌The UK's FTSE 100 touched a fresh peak on Thursday, with money manager Schroders surging more than 30% after a takeover by U.S. firm Nuveen, while data showed Britain's economy barely grew in the final quarter of ‌2025.

Schroders' shares jumped as much as 31% to their highest in more than four years after U.S. ‌asset manager Nuveen agreed to buy the company for 9.9 billion pounds ($13.5 billion) in one of Europe's largest fund management deals. It was the top gainer on the blue-chip FTSE 100, which rose to an intraday record before easing slightly. The index was up ⁠0.1% as ​of 1137 GMT. The ⁠FTSE 250 mid-cap index rose 0.2%.

In contrast to the broader gains, Unilever dipped 1.1% after warning that 2026 sales growth would likely ⁠hit the bottom of its forecast range after a slowdown in the U.S. and Europe. British American Tobacco dropped 2.3% after announcing ​job cuts and full-year results.

Broader macro signals were also in focus as the GDP release showed ⁠the economy grew just 0.1% in the fourth quarter, matching the previous quarter's pace and partly reflecting uncertainty in the run-up to finance ⁠minister ​Rachel Reeves' November budget. Thursday's figures, which showed a sharp downward revision to monthly GDP and a near-3% drop in business investment driven by volatile transport outlays, underscored why investors see the Bank of England as ⁠more likely than not to cut rates again in March.

Among other movers, Morgan Sindall climbed 4.6% to top the ⁠mid-cap index after the ⁠construction firm forecast 2026 results ahead of estimates as its orderbook rose 17% entering the year. Shares of pest-control firm Rentokil Initial fell 4.2% as U.S. peer Rollins missed ‌Wall Street ‌estimates for fourth-quarter revenue and earnings.