UPDATE 2-FTSE 100 ends higher on GlaxoSmithKline boost; midcaps at record highs

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* Activist investor buys multi-billion pound stake in GSK -
report
* Entain gains as quarterly online net revenue jumps
* Travis Perkins rises on 17% growth in Q1 like-for-like
sales
* FTSE 100 up 0.6%, FTSE 250 adds 0.5%

(Updates to close)
By Devik Jain and Shashank Nayar
April 15 (Reuters) - London's FTSE 100 ended higher on
Thursday on the back of gains in healthcare heavyweight
GlaxoSmithKline and mining stocks, while hopes of a faster
economic recovery lifted the mid-cap index to record highs.
The blue-chip index .FTSE rose 0.6%, with GlaxoSmithKline
GSK.L advancing 5% to become the top gainer after the European
Medicines Agency said it was reviewing available data on the use
of the company's monoclonal antibody to treat COVID-19
patients. The gains also came after a report that activist hedge fund
Elliott Management took a multi-billion pound stake in the
British pharmaceutical firm GSK.L . Precious and base metal miners .FTNMX551030 .FTNMX551020
added 2.6% and 1.3%, respectively, as they benefited from
higher metal and gold prices. MET/L GOL/
"I think it's only a matter of time when the FTSE breaches
the 7,000 mark," said Michael Hewson, chief market analyst at
CMC Markets.
"The catalyst for the game is pretty decent macro numbers
out of the U.S., while there is exuberance in minds of the
investors with regard to economic recovery and the reopening
trade."
The domestically focussed mid-cap FTSE 250 index .FTMC
climbed 0.5%, led by gains in consumer discretionary and
industrial stocks.
Britain's biggest building materials seller Travis Perkins
TPK.L gained 2.2% and was one of the biggest boosts to the
mid-cap index after it said its first-quarter like-for-like
sales, excluding the Wickes unit, rose 17.4%. The FTSE 100 has gained 8.1% so far this year as investors
bet that speedy vaccine rollouts, policy support from the
government and businesses reopening would fuel a stronger
economic rebound from the pandemic-driven crash.
British gambling group Entain ENT.L gained 1.1% after its
quarterly online net revenue jumped 33%, even as shop closures
hit its total net gaming revenue.