Manchester-headquartered THG is set for a shock return to the FTSE 250 this week.
The return, which has caught many analysts by surprise, comes just three months after the retailer dropped into the Small Cap Index after a significant fall in its share price and market cap.
It brought an end to THG’s shortlived stay on the FTSE 250, which only saw them included in March 2025, alongside Hiscox and Atalaya Mining Cooper.
On Friday, FTSE Russell issued a statement saying that THG will take the place of Ocean Wilsons from Wednesday September 24 and be deleted from the FTSE SmallCap Index.
It follows the news that Ocean Wilsons is in the process of being acquired by Hansa Investment Company.
The low-key announcement has caught many by surprise but follows a significant bounce in the retailer’s share price.
THG currently has a share price of 35p and a market cap of £498m – up from 25p and £352m respectively at the start of June.
One analyst told BusinessCloud said: “This has been driven by double-digit growth in Myprotein and THG’s announcement that it’s looking to reduce net debt to zero, probably through further disposals.”
The analyst also said the market had got ‘very excited’ by THG’s planned partnership with an unnamed ‘global confectionary leader’.
At the start of 2025, THG demerged its loss-making Ingenuity technology arm, while in August it sold Claremont Ingredients to Nactarome Group for £103m to reduce its debt.
The sale has prompted speculation that CEO Matt Moulding will look at further disposals to reduce net debt to zero.
Earlier this month, Moulding insisted that the outlook was positive despite a drop in half-year revenue and EBITDA.
For the six months ended 30th June 2025, group revenue was £783.4m, down 2.6% on the corresponding period last year.
Adjusted EBITDA was £24m, down from £37.1m, with a margin of 3.1% (vs 4.4% H1 2024), “primarily reflecting substantially higher whey pricing YoY in Nutrition”.
The group said this was in line with guidance and that it had returned to revenue growth in Q2 at +0.9%.
Moulding said: “As a business we’ve reaped the benefits of the recent extensive strategic initiatives across the group, including the global rebranding of Myprotein throughout 2024.
“I’m especially pleased with the response to the new positioning of the Myprotein brand, reflected in the exciting breadth of partnerships we’re delivering with other global brand owners and a return to new customer growth.”