Tiso owner JD Sports tipped to join FTSE 100

JD Sports, the fashion retailer behind Scottish outdoor chain Tiso, is tipped as a likely candidate for promotion to the FTSE 100 at the upcoming reshuffle this week, with M&S expected to just avoid relegation.

Chris Tiso, chief executive of Tiso Group. Picture: Trevor Martin

Shares in JD Sports have risen by more than 50 per cent last year, taking its market value to just over £6 billion.

Helal Miah, investment research analyst at The Share Centre, said the group “remains one of the few good news stories in the UK retail environment”. “It is reaping the rewards of taking a quality approach rather than the ‘pile ’em high and sell ’em cheap’ approach of similarly named groups in sport fashion retailing,” he said.

Russ Mould of AJ Bell said that JD Sports’ recent foray into the US market had also buoyed investor confidence. “Analysts tend to become nervous when British firms buy American ones as the track record of such deals is pretty poor, but JD’s £400 million swoop for Finish Line seems to be going to plan,” he noted.

Miah said there were a number of potential candidates for the drop from the FTSE 100 including drugs firm Hikma and EasyJet, which he said was “almost certain” to go. ITV is also in the relegation zone and Flutter Entertainment [formerly known as Paddy Power] will “be looking over its shoulder”.

M&S has been touted as a relegation possible on many occasions in the past but has always managed to escape.

“It looks like doing so again thanks to the timing of the rights issue which lifts its market cap just in time,” added Miah.

Aberdeen-based energy services firm Wood was relegated from the FTSE 100 at the last reshuffle in February.