FTSE 100 winners and losers in October 2026

Workers outside the London Stock Exchange in the City. Photo: TOLGA AKMEN/AFP via Getty Images.

Widely owned Rolls-Royce Holdings (LSE:RR.), Lloyds Banking Group (LSE:LLOY) and Rio Tinto  Ordinary Shares (LSE:RIO) suffered hefty share price declines in October as investors opted for a rotation to Imperial Brands and AI disruption stocks including RELX (LSE:REL).

Big gains for old economy investments BP (LSE:BP.), Shell (LSE:SHEL), AstraZeneca (LSE:AZN) and Tesco (LSE:TSCO) also contributed to the resilient performance of the FTSE 100 index, which ended a volatile month up 1.2%.

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That compared with a 0.9% decline by the S&P 500 index and 5.3% reverse for the Nasdaq Composite amid the growth-focused benchmark’s worst monthly return since March 2025.

The deterioration in tech sentiment was highlighted by falls of 19% for Google owner Alphabet Inc Class A (NASDAQ:GOOGL) and 15% by Meta Platforms Inc Class A (NASDAQ:META) after they posted third-quarter results at the end of the month.

Deutsche Bank said: “Global markets faced continued volatility in October as investors grappled with mounting doubts around the AI trade, French sovereign stress and geopolitical tensions that pushed energy prices higher.”

Oil’s latest rise saw Brent crude close the month at $117 a barrel for a year-to-date rise of 93% and 13.6% in the month, while European natural gas futures spiked 43.6% in October to their highest level since 2022.

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The impact of higher jet fuel costs on the outlook for engine flying hours was one factor behind the decline of Rolls-Royce shares, which reversed 15% in a rare monthly setback.

A disappointing update by widebody peer Safran SA (EURONEXT:SAF) and fears over a potential slowdown in the pace of data-centre expansion in the power systems division also weighed on the stock.

Rolls ended the month at around 1,237p, having been a record 1,586p a few days after posting forecast-beating interim results on 30 July. Its next update is due on 12 November.

This year’s strong run for banking stocks also came unstuck in October amid interest rate-driven worries about credit conditions, weaker loan demand and funding costs.

The selling accelerated towards the end of the month after results by the sector’s biggest players failed to deliver upgrades to the outlook. Despite some relief at the scale of Autumn Budget-day tax hikes, NatWest Group (LSE:NWG) finished the month down 16% and Lloyds off by 12.5%.

The UK lenders and Barclays (LSE:BARC) are below where they started the year, whereas Asia-focused HSBC Holdings (LSE:HSBA) and Standard Chartered (LSE:STAN) remain stronger despite declines of 15% and 11% in October.

10 worst-performing FTSE 100 stocks in October 2026

Source: ShareScope. Past performance is not a guide to future performance.

In the mining sector, a sharp drop in the iron ore price due to a variety of factors including slower China demand meant Rio Tinto dropped 14% to close the month at 6,120p.

Precious metals miner Fresnillo (LSE:FRES) fell 18%, Antofagasta (LSE:ANTO) by 17% and Endeavour Mining (LSE:EDV) by 12% after the price of gold dropped 7% and silver by 19% to their lowest levels in a year.

Among the 14 stocks down by 10% or more in October, Games Workshop Group (LSE:GAW) lost 12% of its value and Polar Capital Technology Ord (LSE:PCT) slumped 15%.

The weaker tech sentiment meant upgraded full-year guidance by Computacenter (LSE:CCC) failed to prevent its shares from falling 9% in the month. However, the IT services firm remains 2026’s best stock after its 71% surge placed it just ahead of fellow FTSE 100 newcomer Ithaca Energy  Ordinary Share (LSE:ITH).

The high-yielding North Sea-focused exploration and production company rose 10% as one of 21 stocks up by a double-digit percentage in October. BP and Shell rose by 14% and 13%.

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Shell peaked at more than 4,000p towards the end of the month after announcing plans for the second-highest quarterly buyback in its history worth $5 billion.

Supermarket Tesco closed the month at a multi-year high just above 539p after resilient half-year results included an upgrade to the bottom end of profit guidance, sending shares up 15%.

The latest update by Imperial Brands (LSE:IMB) also provided reassurance for investors as shares jumped by 20% in October, although the high-yielding tobacco group was still 5% cheaper across 2026. British American Tobacco (LSE:BATS) rose 11% last month for a year-to-date improvement of 8.5%.

10 best-performing FTSE 100 stocks in October 2026

Source: ShareScope. Past performance is not a guide to future performance.

Financial data firm Experian (LSE:EXPN) topped October’s rankings as a number of the stocks impacted by AI disruption fears earlier this year showed more signs of recovery.

Experian rose 21% but is still 12% lower this year, while London Stock Exchange Group (LSE:LSEG) lifted 16% after upgrading guidance alongside the announcement of a major US acquisition.

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Software business Sage Group (The) (LSE:SGE) and the LexisNexis and Elsevier journals firm RELX (LSE:REL) both put on 20% to stand close to where they started the year.