D-Street Buzz: FMCG stocks under pressure led by HUL, ITC; Tech Mahindra, TCS up 2% each

The Indian stock market is off record highs and is trading in the red with Sensex down 43.98 points or 0.11 percent at 40965.73, while the Nifty shed 19.70 points and is trading at 12067.

Nifty FMCG is the underperforming sector, down a percent dragged by Hindustan Unilever, ITC, Jubilant Foodworks, Tata Global Beverage and United Breweries which shed over a percent each followed by Emami, Marico and Nestle India.

Macquarie has however maintained outperform rating on ITC with target of Rs 376 per share. Concerns with respect to ESG investing has led to significant underperformance. At current valuations, the stock is building in 6 percent FCF growth for FY23-30.

Selective metal stocks are trading in the red, the likes of Jindal Steel & Power, JSW Steel, SAIL, Tata Steel and NALCO being the top losers.

Morgan Stanley however has an overweight call on JSPL with target at Rs 139 per share. As per report, company's bid for Gare Palma mine could be rejected which could have added Rs 900 crore to its EBITDA.

Auto stocks are also under pressure, the top losers being Ashok Leyland, Eicher Motors, Maruti Suzuki, Hero MotoCorp, Tata Motors and TVS Motor Company.

From the PSU banking space, PNB shed 2 percent after the Reserve Bank of India said the lender under-reported its non-performing assets by Rs 2,617 crore for the last fiscal. The other losers include Indian Bank, Oriental Bank of Commerce and Union Bank of India.

Nifty IT is up over a percent led by Tech Mahindra, Tata Consultancy Services, HCL Tech and Wipro.

The top gainers from the Nifty index are Tech Mahindra, Tata Consultancy Services, GAIL India, HCL Tech and Kotak Mahindra Bank while the top losers include Grasim Industries, Hindustan Unilever, ITC, Adani Ports and JSW Steel.

The most active stocks are Indiabulls Housing Finance, TCS, YES Bank, Reliance Industries and State Bank of India.

About 993 shares have advanced, 1116 shares declined, and 139 shares are unchanged.

Disclosure: Reliance Industries Ltd. is the sole beneficiary of Independent Media Trust which controls Network18 Media & Investments Ltd.