FirstGroup shares recover after near-7% early fall as £48 million Mistral Data sale completes

Tech Software & Services Written by: Ephrem Joseph 08:36 Mon 24 Aug 2026 --> Disclaimer No investment advice About this content Editorial Standards & Policies Share article About this content × About Ephrem Joseph Ephrem began his journalistic journey at Proactive in June 2021. With a strong academic background in Information Technology, his expertise particularly lies in the field of Cyber Security, Management Information Systems and Computer Forensics. Before joining Proactive, Ephrem worked as a researcher and lecturer at a number of leading universities, including the University of Portsmouth's Institute of Criminal Justice Studies, the University of Winchester’s Institute of Policing, and Jain... Read more About the publisher Proactive financial news and online broadcast teams provide fast, accessible, informative and actionable business and finance news content to a global investment audience. All our content is produced independently by our experienced and qualified teams of news journalists. Proactive news team spans the world’s key finance and investing hubs with bureaus and studios in London, New York, Toronto, Vancouver, Sydney and Perth. We are experts in medium and small-cap markets, we also keep our community up to date with blue-chip companies, commodities and broader investment stories. This is content that excites and engages motivated private investors. The team delivers news and unique insights across the market including but not confined to: biotech and pharma, mining and natural resources, battery metals, oil and gas, crypto and emerging digital and EV technologies. Use of technology Proactive has always been a forward looking and enthusiastic technology adopter. Our human content creators are equipped with many decades of valuable expertise and experience. The team also has access to and use technologies to assist and enhance workflows. Proactive will on occasion use automation and software tools, including generative AI. Nevertheless, all content published by Proactive is edited and authored by humans, in line with best practice in regard to content production and search engine optimisation. FirstGroup PLC ( LSE:FGP ) View Price & Profile FirstGroup shares recover after near-7% early fall as £48 million Mistral Data sale completes Published: 08:36 24 Aug 2026 BST FirstGroup PLC (LSE:FGP) shares recovered sharply on Monday after falling almost 7% in early trading, as the transport operator confirmed completion of the £48 million sale of Mistral Data Limited to Tracsis (AIM:TRCS) PLC (AIM). The company opened at 175p, around 2.5% below Friday’s 179.4p close, before dropping to an intraday low of 166.9p, representing a fall of almost 7%. The shares then rebounded strongly, reaching a session high of 181.2p, around 1% above the previous close - before easing back to 178.9p at 8:30, down 0.28% on the day. Initially announced on 29 July, FirstGroup completed the sale of Mistral Data on 23 August. The £48 million consideration was paid to the group on completion, subject to customary adjustments. Separately, FirstGroup continued its share buyback programme last week, purchasing around 1.65 million ordinary shares between 17 August and 21 August. The shares were bought at weighted average prices ranging from 179.79p to 182.58p. Following those purchases, FirstGroup held 26.15 million ordinary shares in treasury, leaving 544.55 million shares in issue excluding treasury stock. Continue reading