Closing Bell: Market ends flat amid volatility; PSU Bank, realty down 1%

Siddhartha Khemka, Head - Retail Research, Motilal Oswal Financial Services:

Domestic equities remained lackluster ahead of US PMI data to be released later in the day and Fed minutes due to be released on Wednesday. Nifty opened positive but see-sawed in a narrow range and finally ended flat with a minor loss of 18 points (-0.1%) at 17,827 levels.

Broader market too was down -0.4%. Majority of the sectors ended in red. FMCG, Consumer Durables, Energy and Infra were marginal gainers.

Investors are cautiously awaiting US Fed’s monetary policy meeting minutes due on Wednesday to gauge its hawkishness. This along with PMI data due today and GDP data later this week would provide cues on interest rate cycle.

Recent CPI data points towards inflation stickiness and thus the need for prolonged high rates by US Fed. Even RBI’s MPC minutes would be released tomorrow and would be keenly eyed. FIIs which had turned net buyers last week after a long time, again became net sellers, denting sentiments.

Rupak De, Senior Technical Analyst at LKP Securities

Nifty ended flat following a volatile trading session. The bias remains negative as it falls back into the descending channel on the daily chart. Besides, the momentum oscillator RSI has entered a bearish crossover.

On the lower end, immediate support is visible at 17,750, below which the selling pressure may increase.

Jatin Gedia, Technical Research Analyst, Sharekhan by BNP Paribas

The Nifty opened with gains however as the day progressed selling pressure emerged at higher levels and the Nifty closed in the negative down ~18 points. On the hourly charts we can observe that the key hourly moving averages placed in the zone 17,920 – 17,950 acted as a stiff resistance and the morning bounce fizzled out after reaching this resistance zone.

On the hourly momentum indicator, we can observe a positive divergence developing which is a sign that the selling pressure is weakening. Thus, price and momentum indicator is providing divergent signals and in such a scenario a consolidation is highly likely.

The range of consolidation is likely to be 18,150 – 17,650. In terms of levels, 17,920 – 17,950 shall act as immediate hurdle one while on the downside the 17,650 – 17,600 which coincides with the 61.82% fibonacci retracement level shall act as a crucial support to watch out for form short term perspective.

Shrikant Chouhan, Head of Equity Research (Retail), Kotak Securities

Markets were extremely range bound with a negative bias as the shutdown of the US markets on Monday prompted investors to take a cautious stance. In fact, the markets have been more or less sluggish to negative over the past few sessions due to factors like rising interest rates, higher inflation, lingering geo-political tensions, and slowing growth.

Technically, the Nifty has formed a bearish candle on daily charts which is broadly negative for the market.

As long as the index is trading below 17,900, the weak sentiment is likely to continue and below the same it could slip till 17,750-17,700. On the flip side, a quick pullback is possible if the market trades above 17,900 and on further appreciation it could move up to 17,950-18,00

Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Financial Services

Despite opening gains, negative cues from global peers cast a shadow over investor sentiments. Underpinned by inflationary concerns, the market is keenly eyeing the US fed meeting minutes, scheduled to be released tomorrow, for hints on further monetary policy tightening. Risk appetite was further hammered by FIIs turning net sellers and fear of El Niño.

Kunal Shah, Senior Technical Analyst at LKP Securities:

The Bank Nifty index ended on a flat note after a couple of days of brutal selling. The index is now trading at a critical support zone of 40500 and if it manages to stay above this level can witness a pullback rally towards 41,000-41,300 levels.

The mentioned support if breached will lead to further sell-off towards 40,000 where a significant amount of put writing is visible.

Rupee Close:

Indian rupee ended lower at 82.79 per dollar against previous close of 82.73.

Market Close

Benchmark indices ended marginally lower in the volatile session on February 21.

At Close, the Sensex was down 18.82 points or 0.03% at 60,672.72, and the Nifty was down 17.90 points or 0.10% at 17,826.70. About 1432 shares have advanced, 1939 shares declined, and 138 shares are unchanged.

NTPC, Britannia Industries, Reliance Industries, Power Grid and Tata Steel were among the top Nifty gainers, while losers included Adani Enterprises, Apollo Hospitals, Coal India, Tata Motors and Bajaj Auto.

On the sectoral front, PSU Bank and Realty down 1 percent each, while selling was also seen in the oil & gas, metal, healthcare and IT names.

BSE midcap and smallcap ended with marginal losses.

Saumil Gandhi, Senior Analyst - Commodities, HDFC Securities

Gold prices traded weak on Tuesday, with spot gold prices at Comex were trading lower by 0.50% at USD 1831 per ounce. Gold April future contract at MCX were trading down by 0.33% at Rs 56029 per 10 grams by noon session.

Gold prices traded in choppy range in previous session as traders waited for more macro data to gauge the U.S. Federal Reserve's rate-hike strategy. Investors are now awaiting minutes of the Fed's latest policy meeting due to be released on Wednesday.

The dollar index hovered near recent peak before released of FOMC meeting minutes on Wednesday. If rally in dollar index will extend above its recent high that could negative for gold price.

Comex Spot Gold having strong resistance at USD 1859 per ounce and support at USD 1817 per ounce, fall below this level will extend downside to USD 1805 levels. MCX Gold April future has resistance at Rs 56380 per 10 grams and supports place at Rs 55980/55700 per 10 grams.

CLSA View On Samvardhana Motherson International

-Buy rating, target Rs 98 per share
-SAS adds new capabilities, is a leading player in cockpit assembly market
-Valuations attractive; gains access to largest EV OEM
-EV order book is increasing for Samvardhana Motherson Automotive Systems

Samvardhana Motherson International was quoting at Rs 82.20, up Rs 0.30, or 0.37 percent on the BSE.

Morgan Stanley View On Bharti Airtel

-Overweight rating, target at Rs 860 per share
-Company rolled out higher minimum recharge plans across 2 more circles
-Think these plans could eventually be rolled out Pan-India over coming weeks
-Comapny has been first mover in taking entry-level tariffs higher
-Competition has still not reacted
-Expect this to be 1.3-1.5% accretive to rev of mobile `business or equal, once rolled out

BSE Sensex

BSE 500

Citi View On Marico 

-Buy rating, target at Rs 585 per share
-Volume growth acceleration in core brands
-Expect healthy uptick across company’s business segments starting Q4FY23
-Foods and digital brands on track
-Believe that there is room for stock’s valuation gap vs peers to narrow

Market at 3 PM

Benchmark indices are trading lower in a volatile session.

The Sensex is down 40.96 points or 0.07% at 60,650.58, and the Nifty is down 19.10 points or 0.11% at 17,825.50. About 1367 shares have advanced, 1855 shares declined, and 129 shares are unchanged.

NTPC tops Nifty50, climbs over 3%

NTPC shares topped the gainer list of benchmark Nifty50, rising more than 3 percent to hit 11-week high on February 21 despite volatility in broader markets.

The stock has formed large bullish candlestick pattern on the daily charts, with making higher highs higher lows formation for fourth consecutive day in a row.

The stock was trading at Rs 173.55, the highest trading level since December 6 last year, up 3.37 percent on the NSE, with above average volumes. In an intraday trade, it already surpassed the Budget day's high (of Rs 173.80) at Rs 174.25.

Further, it traded well above all key short term as well as long term moving averages (5, 9, 21, 50, 100 and 200-day EMA - exponential moving average) after seeing a breakout of long downward sloping resistance trendline adjoining highs of November 1 last year and February 1 this year, while taking a support at upward sloping support trendline adjoining lows of September 28 last year and February 3, 2023.

"NTPC is trading in a range since November 22 and is attempting a breakout on the upside. The move on February 21 has broken a smaller degree trendline and the move is assisted by volumes," Viraj Vyas, Research Analyst at Ashika Stock Broking said.

He feels a breakout above Rs 175 can drive the stock higher towards Rs 215-220, while the important support is at Rs 165-167 zone – 21-day EMA.

CLSA View On Samvardhana Motherson International

-Buy rating, target Rs 98 per share
-SAS adds new capabilities, is a leading player in cockpit assembly market
-Valuations attractive; gains access to largest EV OEM
-EV order book is increasing for Samvardhana Motherson Automotive Systems

Samvardhana Motherson International was quoting at Rs 82.15, up Rs 0.25, or 0.31 percent.

India VIX, or the fear gauge, up over 5 percent today

Europe Data Watch

-Euro Zone Feb Services PMI at 53 versus estimate of 51
-Euro Zone Feb Manufacturing PMI at 48.5 versus estimate of 49.3

Dilip Buildcon's subsidiary executes concession agreement with NHAI for a project worth Rs 1,955 crore

Project:Construction of Four Lane Urga - Pathalgaon section of NH-130A under Bharatmala Pariyojana in the state of Chhattisgarh
Mode: Hybrid Annuity
Completion Period: 30 months

IRB Infrastructure  emerges as preferred bidder for BOT project

IRB Infrastructure Developers has emerged as a preferred bidder for the project of “Upgradation to six lane with paved shoulder of NH-27" from Samakhiyali to Santalpur section in the state of Gujarat on BOT (Toll) Mode.

Upon award of this project, the company’s order book will stand revised to approximately Rs 20,892 crore(excluding GST), which includes construction order book of Rs 9,714 crore providing strong visibility for next ~ 2.5 years.

Market at 2 PM

Benchmark indices were trading higher in the volatile session.

The Sensex was up 143.49 points or 0.24% at 60,835.03, and the Nifty was up 36.90 points or 0.21% at 17,881.50. About 1475 shares have advanced, 1709 shares declined, and 139 shares are unchanged.

On the BSE:

Capacite lnfraprojects bags order worth Rs 181.4 crore

Capacite lnfraprojects has received order worth Rs 181.36 crore from Indian Oil Corporation for construction of residential towers at Indian Oil Nagar, Andheri (West), Mumbai.

Cyient & Thingtrax form partnership

Cyient announced a partnership with Thingtrax to enable manufacturers to increase efficiency and reduce costs.

The partnership will enable global manufacturers to drive higher performance across their entire manufacturing operation through AI-powered data. Cyient's end-to-end manufacturing services suite and the Thingtrax solution allow manufacturing leaders to improve operational performance by engaging people at every level to embrace a high-performance culture.

Cyient was quoting at Rs 947.65, up Rs 8.75, or 0.93 percent.

Lupin launches Lurasidone Hydrochloride tablets in the United States

Lupin announced the launch of Lurasidone Hydrochloride Tablets, 20 mg, 40 mg, 60 mg, 80 mg and 120 mg, to market a generic equivalent of Latuda Tablets of Sunovion Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

Lurasidone Hydrochloride Tablets, 20 mg, 40 mg, 60 mg, 80 mg and 120 mg had estimated annual sales of USD 4.2 billion in the US.

Promoter Shobha Gangwal shareholding in InterGlobe Aviation drops to 2.99% after block sale

Promoter Shobha Gangwal intimated exchanges that her shareholding in the InterGlobe Aviation reduced to 2.99%, from 7.04% earlier after selling of 4.05% stake or 1.56 crore shares via block sale on February 16.

Interglobe Aviation was quoting at Rs 1,867.45, down Rs 14.25, or 0.76 percent.

Thomas Videbaek resigns as Non-Executive Independent Director of Camlin Fine Sciences

Thomas Videbaek has resigned as Non-Executive Independent Director of Camlin Fine Sciences with effect from February 23, 2023. He resigned due to personal reasons including the logistics around board meetings and other commitments.

Camlin Fine Sciences was quoting at Rs 138.95, up Rs 0.95, or 0.69 percent on the BSE.

BSE 500

Lumax Auto shares zoom on plans to acquire 75% stake in IAC International

Shares of Lumax Auto Technologies were trading almost 6 percent higher in the afternoon trade as investors cheered the company’s plan to acquire a 75 percent stake in interior systems and component supplier IAC International.

IACNA Mauritius Ltd will sell the stake to Lumax Auto for Rs 587 crore, with the deal expected to be completed by March 2023. The remaining 25 percent stake will be held by IAC Global.

Marine Electricals zooms 5% on winning orders worth Rs 13.92 crore

Marine Electricals shares zoomed 5 percent on February 21 after the company secured an order worth Rs 13.92 crore.

The order is for supply of shaft generator, main switch boards, distribution boards and associated systems with OBS for PCV Project from Goa Shipyard Ltd. “The delivery of the said goods shall be made over a period of one year,” the company said in an exchange filing.

Market at 1 PM

Benchmark indices jave erased all the intraday gains and are trading flat in a volatile session.

The Sensex is down 0.81 points or 0.00% at 60,690.73, and the Nifty is down 3.80 points or 0.02% at 17,840.80. About 1457 shares have advanced, 1689 shares declined, and 153 shares are unchanged.

BSE Power index gained 0.5 percent led by Adani Power, NTPC, Tata Power

Best Agro subsidiary receives patent for a synergistic herbicidal composition 

Seedlings India Private Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary of Best Agrolife has received a patent for an invention entitled synergistic herbicidal composition of triazine and sulfonylurea herbicides with phenoxyacetic herbicide for the term of 20 years.

Best Agrolife is quoting at Rs 1,089.30, down Rs 5.25, or 0.48 percent on the BSE.

50-DMA

PTC Industries arm in MoU with Dassault Aviation

Aerolloy Technologies, a wholly owned subsidiary of PTC Industries Limited, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Dassault Aviation, a major player in the global aerospace industry.

Lokesh Machines in pact with government for incubation of laser additive manufacturing system

Lokesh Machines has entered into an incubation agreement with Raja Ramanna Centre for Advanced Technology (RRCAT), Government of India, Department of Atomic Energy (DAE), Indore.

The agreement is for incubation of laser additive manufacturing system using powder-fed directed energy deposition. RRCAT is a premier R&D organization under the Department of Atomic Energy, Government of India, working in the areas of development and applications of lasers, particle accelerators and related technologies.

Lokesh Machines was quoting at Rs 116.50, up Rs 0.65, or 0.56 percent on the BSE.

Market at 12 PM

Benchmark indices were trading higher with Nifty around 17900.

The Sensex was up 148.34 points or 0.24% at 60,839.88, and the Nifty was up 31.90 points or 0.18% at 17,876.50. About 1604 shares have advanced, 1488 shares declined, and 157 shares are unchanged.

Mirae Asset Mutual Fund picks additional stake in Sapphire Foods India

Mirae Asset Mutual Fund has picked additional 0.56% stake in Sapphire Foods India via open market transactions on February 17, raising total shareholding to 7.9% from 7.35% earlier.

Sapphire Foods India was quoting at Rs 1,225.65, up Rs 28.50, or 2.38 percent.

Gujarat Ambuja Exports in MoU with Gujarat government for a project

Gujarat Ambuja Exports has entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Government of Gujarat to setup a 900 TPD Greenfield Corn Wet-Milling Plant at Himmatnagar, Gujarat.

BPCL plans to raise Rs 1,500 crore in FY23

Bharat Petroleum Corporation (BPCL) is planning to raise up to Rs 1,500 crore during current financial year (FY23) through private placement of unsecured non-convertible debentures subject to market conditions.

The debentures are proposed to be listed on Debt Market segment of BSE and National Stock Exchange of India.

Bharat Petroleum Corporation was quoting at Rs 328.30, up Rs 2.30, or 0.71 percent.

Hindustan Aeronautics extends CB Ananthakrishnan role as MD & CEO of the company for 6 months

Market update at 11 AM

Sensex is up 201.32 points or 0.33% at 60892.86, and the Nifty added 56 points or 0.31% at 17900.60.

Nifty50

SpiceJet to consider issue of equity shares preferential basis on February 24

The Board of Directors of SpiceJet in its meeting scheduled to be held on February 24, 2023 (Friday), will discuss and consider, issuance of equity shares on preferential basis consequent upon conversion of outstanding liabilities into equity shares of the Company, subject to applicable regulatory approvals.

Further, the board of directors will also discuss and consider options for raising fresh capital through issue of eligible securities to qualified institutional buyers, subject to applicable regulatory approvals.

SpiceJet was quoting at Rs 37.90, down Rs 0.45, or 1.17 percent.