Provident share price: Group poised to drop out of FTSE 100

Provident Financial Group (LON:PFG) is set for demotion from the FTSE 100 index, The Telegraph has reported. The move will come after the troubled subprime lender saw its shares tumble last week following a profit warning, with the company also scrapping its payout to shareholders and announcing the departure of its chief executive.

Provident’s share price closed 1.04 percent lower at 906.50p yesterday, slightly underperforming the broader UK market, with the benchmark FTSE 100 index ending the session 0.87 percent lower at 7,337.43. The group’s shares have lost just under 70 percent of their value over the past year, and are down by about 68 percent in the year-to-date.

The Telegraph reported yesterday that the previous session’s drop in Provident’s share price had given the company a market capitalisation of £1.34 billion, meaning it was almost certain to drop into the mid-cap FTSE 250 following this week’s reshuffle.

The reshuffle will be based on yesterday’s closing prices and will come into effect after the market closes on Friday, September 15. 

The demotion will come after Provident’s shares tumbled more than 66 percent a little over a week ago after the subprime lender issued a profit warning, scrapped its dividend and announced the departure of its chief executive. The stock, however, subsequently recouped some of the losses after the company unveiled a management shake-up at its troubled lending unit, bringing back a former executive to lead the division.

The 10 analysts offering 12-month price targets for Provident for the Financial Times have a median target of 1,650.00p on the shares, with a high estimate of 3,478.00p and a low estimate of 600.00p. As of August 25, the consensus forecast amongst 14 polled investment analysts covering the subprime lender has it that the company will outperform the market.

As of 07:52 BST, Wednesday, 30 August, Provident Financial plc share price is 909.04p.