Closing Bell: Sensex, Nifty end with marginal gains; realty shine, metals drag

Indian equity indices ended higher for the third straight session on April 23 with Nifty above 22,350. At close, the Sensex was up 89.83 points or 0.12 percent at 73,738.45, and the Nifty was up 31.60 points or 0.14 percent at 22,368.

We wrap up today's edition of the Moneycontrol live market blog, and will be back tomorrow morning with all the latest updates and alerts. Please visit www.moneycontrol.com/markets/global-indices for all the global market action.

The rupee saw marginal gains of 0.03, closing at 83.35, supported by a positive rally in the capital markets and weakness in non-agricultural commodity prices. Despite the stability of the dollar near 106$, rupee movement remained limited within a narrow range, holding around the 83.50 levels in recent days.

The ongoing General Election in India is expected to keep the rupee volatile within a range of 83.15-83.65. Market participants will closely monitor the PCE Price Index data in the US on Friday for further insights into the currency's direction.

The Nifty remained sideways throughout the session as it failed to provide any directional breakout. However, the overall trend remains positive as the index closed above the critical moving average.

The Relative Strength Index (RSI) is showing a bullish crossover with a reading below 60.

On the higher end, the range of 22350-22400 is likely to act as a resistance zone; a decisive breakout above 22400 might trigger a rally in the market. On the lower end, support is positioned at 22250; a breach below this level might weaken the bullish sentiment.

Range Bound trade comes to an end higher at 22,368 with gains of 31.60 points. Among the sectors, Realty gained over 2.6% and registered itself as a top gainer followed by FMCG and Media; and on the flip side, Pharma (0.90%) corrected the most.

During the day, Chemical and Railway counters regained their lost momentum by breaching their congestion zone. The interest of market participants was more towards Broader markets as Mid and Small Caps gained over 1% and outperformed the Frontline Index.

As mentioned yesterday, the Index found resistance at the bearish gap zone of 22,430-22,500. Our view remains the same i.e. need to fill the mentioned gap zone to extend its uptrend while a level of 22,190 (50 DMA) will continue to act as support.

Indian rupee ended flat at 83.34 per dollar on Tuesday versus Monday's close of 83.36.

Indian equity indices ended higher for the third straight session on April 23 with Nifty around 22,350.

At close, the Sensex was up 89.83 points or 0.12 percent at 73,738.45, and the Nifty was up 31.60 points or 0.14 percent at 22,368. About 2224 shares advanced, 1450 shares declined, and 109 shares unchanged.

Grasim Industries, Bharti Airtel, Nestle India, Maruti Suzuki and HCL Technologies were among major gainers on the Nifty, while losers included Sun Pharma, BPCL, Reliance Industries, M&M and Hindalco Industries.

Among sectors, healthcare, metal, oil & gas and energy were down 0.3-0.8 percent, while FMCG, power, IT, realty and auto up 0.4-2 percent.

BSE midcap index rose 0.5 percent and smallcap index gained 1 percent.

The Rs 649.47-crore initial public offering (IPO) of JNK India, a heating equipment manufacturer, was subscribed 41 percent by the afternoon of April 23, the first day of bidding.

Investors bought 45.26 lakh equity shares against an issue size of 1.1 crore, subscription data available with the exchanges showed.

Qualified institutional buyers (QIBs) took the lead, picking 67 percent of the shares set aside for them. Retail investors bought 38 percent of their allotted quota, while non-institutional investors were yet to warm up to the issue.

-Potential Bajaj Housing Finance listing may not add considerable value
-If investors look at BAF on a standalone basis, believe business profile would look weaker
-Standalone earnings profile would also look weaker
-There would also likely be a holdco discount for company’s market price

Shares of Vodafone Idea jumped 12 percent on April 23, a day after the company's follow-on public offer (FPO) concluded with 6.36 times subscription with investors bidding for 8,011.8 crore equity shares.

The country's third-largest telecom operator had offered 1,260 crore shares in the Rs 18,000-crore FPO, the largest such offering in the country as part of a larger strategy to gather Rs 45,000 crore. Read More

-Company has invested in new pipeline capacity
-Company expanded its network versus GSPL
-GSPL has had limited capacity expansion & has seen nearly 95 percent network utilisation
-India's regulatory framework for pipeline tariff remains unchanged
-Company’s pipeline tariff was revised in FY23

Sensex Today | Nfity Bank index shed 360 points from day's high

Indian Rupee appreciated on Tuesday on weak US Dollar and positive domestic markets. However, a recovery in crude oil prices and FII outflows capped sharp gains. US Dollar declined on easing tensions between Israel and Iran.

We expect Rupee to trade with a slight positive bias on improved global risk sentiments and easing of geopolitical tensions in the Middle East. Easing Dollar on strong Euro and Pound amid mixed to positive PMI data from Europe also supported the Rupee. However, any fresh aggressions in the Middle East may cap sharp upside.

Traders may take cues from PMI data from US. Investors may remain cautious ahead of inflation data from US later this week. USDINR spot price is expected to trade in a range of Rs 83.10 to Rs 83.50.

The company’s Q4 consolidated net profit was down at Rs 1.4 crore against Rs 2.7 crore, while revenue up at R 71.17 crore from Rs 70.9 crore, YoY.

-Industry spending growth was 20 percent YoY in March versus 26 percent in February
-Companies spending growth was much slower at 1 percent YoY
-Slow growth is likely because of the continued impact of RBI's notification on corporate spending

Sensex Today | Market at 3 PM

The Sensex was up 198.24 points or 0.27 percent at 73,846.86, and the Nifty was up 57.90 points or 0.26 percent at 22,394.30. About 2084 shares advanced, 1192 shares declined, and 88 shares unchanged.

Mastek has won the multi-tower deal from Yanbu Cement Company (YCC) to optimize the efficiency of YCC’s production line.

YCC, a pioneer in the cement industry in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), embarked on a digital & cloud transformation journey with Mastek in 2022, aligning with Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 and Smart Industry 4.0 initiatives.

Sensex Today | BSE Healthcare index down 0.5 percent; Sun Pharma Advanced, Sun Pharma, Solara Active Pharma top losers

Heubach GmbH, a Germany-based chemical company and the second-largest global pigments player filed for bankruptcy in April 2024. Existing creditors provided a loan of around $70 million to the company to help it restructure its debt. On the back of this news Sudarshan Chemicals stands to gain meaningful market share in the export as well as domestic markets since it is currently the third largest global pigment player with newly commissioned capacities in FY23 with an industry-leading 35% market share in the domestic market.

We continue to believe that challenges like a) consolidation in the pigment industry, (Permanent shutdowns in capacities in Europe) b) high inflation in developed economies, c) weak geopolitical scenario, d) sharp volatility in commodity prices, and e) supply chain disruptions are expected to hit mid-sized and small pigment players resulting in benefit to major players like Sudarshan Chemicals. We maintain our positive stance on the company.

-Progress has been slow and target is shifted by a year; which is disappointing
-Moderation in deal intake, Q4 performance, and slow progress on margin trajectory led to EPS cut of 5-6% for FY25-26E
-Valuation remains rich even after today’s correction

Sensex Today | Market at 2 PM

The Sensex was up 152.93 points or 0.21 percent at 73,801.55, and the Nifty was up 51.80 points or 0.23 percent at 22,388.20. About 2089 shares advanced, 1167 shares declined, and 83 shares unchanged.

-Company should be key beneficiary of Vodafone Idea’s fundraising and planned addition of 48,000 4G/5G sites
-Upgrade CY25/26 forecasts by 1-9 percent factoring in 24,000 additional tenancies, whicj will boost CY26 EBITDA growth to 10 percent YoY
-Vodafone Idea’s past dues settlement of Rs 5,700 crore could be worth an incremental Rs 21 per share for company
-Although Indus stock is up 150 percent in 12 months, it is still trading at 60 percent disc to global tower peers

RPP Infra Projects and M/s V. Sathyamoorthy& Co .- M/s RPPSATHYAMOORTHY JV (JV) with the ratio of 60% and 40% respectively has been received letter of acceptance for a new projects - major up-gradation of Raipur Railway Station of SECR on Engineering, Procurement and Construction (EPC) modelfor the Value of Rs 412.81 crore (Incl GST).

Tata Power Solar Systems and a wholly-owned subsidiary of Tata Power Renewable Energy Limited (TPREL) announced its strategic partnership with Indian Bank to bolster the adoption of solar rooftop among residential consumers.

The collaboration aims to facilitate financing solutions under the popular Pradhan Mantri Surya Ghar Muft Bijli Yojana scheme for installations up to 3 KW, as well as extend support for installations ranging from 3 to 10 KW under the regular scheme.

Ankit Jain has resigned as Chief Financial Officer of Arvind SmartSpaces with effect from April 22.

Thakur Krishan Singh has resigned as Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of SRM Contractors, with effect from April 22, due to an offer for higher position within the company, while CA Aashni Mahajan has been appointed as the Chief Financial Officer of the company with effect from April 23.

The company has appointed Rupesh Kumar as Chief Executive Officer of the company with effect from April 22.

Online gaming companies have been reeling under a slew of retrospective tax notices since September 2022, with Gameskraft, Delta Corp and others receiving notices to pay Rs 1.12 lakh crore (the total due), as per the GST department’s calculations (at 28 percent on the face value of bets).

The sector might also not get any prospective relief at the next GST council meeting scheduled to be held in June, after the formation of the new government, as many companies are hoping. Read More

-Q4 EBITDA rose 5 percent QoQ & in-line
-O2C & Jio were ahead of estimate, retail missed
-Retail growth was soft though balance sheet improved
-Net Debt declined aided by capital raise & asset divestiture
-Jio was ahead on higher ARPUs due to improved subscriber mix
-O2C profitability rose on robust refining while petchem was subdued
-Peak capex appears behind, FCF improved and net debt fell 6 percent YoY
-Raise FY25/26 EBITDA 3 percent/1 percent

Ravindra Singh Negi has resigned as Chief Operating Officer – consumer products business of Bajaj Electricals, with effect from May 29, 2024, due to personal and professional reasons.

Bharti Airtel today announced that it has deployed additional sites in Banaskantha district to densify its network.

The network expansion project in Banaskantha was undertaken across 434 villages covering 8.8 Lakh population base. Customers in the tehsils of Deesa, Palanpur, Tharad, Vadgam, Kankrej,
Dhanera, Deodar, Dantiwada under the Banaskantha district will directly benefit from this network expansion.

The board of directors of Choice International at its meeting held on April 23, 2024, approved to raise funds aggregating to Rs 693,63,00,000 by way of issue of 2,31,21,000 Warrants to be converted in to equivalent number of equity shares at a later stage of face value of Rs 10 each, for a consideration of Rs 300 per warrant.

Hemant Dilip Wani has resigned as Chief Executive Officer (CFO) of Nibe with effect from April 22.

The board has appointed Ravi Kumar Pareek as Chief Financial Officer of the company with effect from same date.

Mahindra & Mahindra Financial Services defers board meet to consider Q4 earnings to May 30.

The meeting of the board of directors of Inox Wind is scheduled on April 25 to consider issuance of bonus equity shares.

Sensex Today | Nestle India, HUL, ITC fall from day's high

-Company’s Q4 earnings was slight beat to estimates
-Energy EBITDA stood out while retail was lower
-Net debt & capex intensity declined to lowest in 2 years with FCF of USD 1.3 billion in FY24
-See multiple catalysts for re-rating across verticals as company exits 4th investment cycle

Synchrony Global SDN BHD, the step-down subsidiary of Wipro, has been voluntarily dissolved with effect from April 22.

Shares of Gujarat State Petronet Ltd (GSPL) failed to hold on to early gains and came sharply off their highs in afternoon trade on April 23, extending losses for the second straight session as a tariff cut prompted a series of downgrades. Read More

Sensex Today | Nifty Midcap 100 index up 1 percent; Vodafone Idea, Aditya Birla Fashion & Retail, Tata Teleservices among top gainers

The stock price of Heubach Colorants India plunged over 15 percent on BSE on April 23 after its sister company Heubach GmbH, considered as the second largest pigments player globally, filed for bankruptcy in Germany on April 22. Both the firms are part of the Heubach group. Read More

Sensex Today | Bharti Airtel, Grasim Industries recovered more than 3 percent from their day's low

Jyoti Structures has been pre-qualified by Kenya Transmission Company Limited (KETRACO), Kenya to bid for 132 kV Narok-Bomet Transmission Line tender for 88 Kms on total turnkey basis.

Aarti Drugs has informed that the United States Food and Drug Administration (USFDA) has inspected the Formulations (Oncology) manufacturing facility of its subsidiary (Pinnacle Life Science Private Limited) at Baddi, Himachal Pradesh from 16th to 22nd of April 2024.

On conclusion of the inspection, the company has received 5 inspectional observations in Form 483, where none of the observations are related to data integrity.

The company will work closely with US FDA in resolving all points.

At the upper price band of Rs 415, JNK India is available at a P/E of 37x (FY24 EPS annualized), which appears to be reasonably priced compared to peers.

With India's thriving oil & gas and hydrogen industries, coupled with the company's strong financial track record, impressive clientele, and ambitious expansion plans, it's poised for substantial growth.

Assign a “Subscribe” rating on a long term basis.

Sensex Today | Shipping companies in focus, gain 5-10%

Inox Wind share price jumped more than 5 percent intraday on April 23 after the green energy firm said its board would take up a proposal to issue bonus shares.

The company's board will meet on April 25 to consider and approve the proposal for issuance of bonus equity shares to the shareholders of the company, Inox Wind said in an exchange filing.

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Tata Consumer Products, Tata Elxsi, ICICI Prudential Life Insurance Company, Mahindra & Mahindra Financial Services, Mahindra EPC Irrigation, Multi Commodity Exchange of India, 360 ONE WAM, Cyient DLM, Huhtamaki India, LKP Securities, and NELCO will be in focus ahead of March FY24 quarter earnings on April 23.

Sensex Today | Market at 12 PM

The Sensex was up 229.85 points or 0.31 percent at 73,878.47, and the Nifty was up 77.20 points or 0.35 percent at 22,413.60. About 2135 shares advanced, 1031 shares declined, and 96 shares unchanged.

Shares of KP Energy were locked at 5 percent upper circuit on April 23 after the company received a wind power project development contract.

"KP Energy has received new order for development of 9MW wind power project forming part of the wind-solar hybrid power project to be developed in Gujarat," the company said in a release.

This project is awarded by Bhathwari Technologies Private Limited under captive power project segment and shall be connected to state transmission utility (STU) network. It includes both supply and service for development of the project on turnkey basis. The project is scheduled to be completed in the financial year 2024-25.

Union Bank of India has classified BGR Energy Systems' account as non-performing asset with effect from March 29, 2024. As on March 2024, the overall credit exposure of the company with the bank was Rs 188 crore.

Sensex Today | BSE Smallcap index up nearly 1 percent; Tejas Networks, Sudarshan Chemical, Hatsun Agro among major contributors

Broking house pare FY25E/26E EPS 12%/6% on higher depreciation expenses and tax rate.

It revised RIL to Accumulate from Buy as the stock has run-up 29% in the past six months, but up Target Price to Rs 3,479 from Rs 3,354 on higher FY26E EBITDA led by benefits from petchem expansion and weaker INR.

It assume 22.8x (unchanged) FY26E EV/EBITDA for Retail, 18.0x (unchanged) for Digital Services and 6.5x (unchanged) for O2C.

Sensex Today | BSE Oil & Gas index down 0.25 percent; Reliance Industries, Petronet LNG, BPCL among major losers

Kesoram Industries' net loss widened significantly to Rs 244.4 crore in March FY24 quarter, from loss of Rs 26.1 crore in corresponding period last fiscal, impacted by weak operating numbers and muted topline.

Revenue from operations for the quarter at Rs 1,073.6 crore, rising 1.7% YoY.

Stock Market LIVE Updates | Bharti Airtel, Eicher Motors among top stocks that touched fresh 52-week highs

- Heubach GmbH filed an application for opening of regular insolvency proceedings over its assets in Germany
- Heubach GmbH is the second largest global pigments players
- Sudarshan is third largest pigments player globally after DIC and Heubach

Sensex Today | Market at 11 AM

The Sensex was up 162.12 points or 0.22 percent at 73,810.74, and the Nifty was up 44.90 points or 0.20 percent at 22,381.30. About 2038 shares advanced, 1068 shares declined, and 91 shares unchanged.

Gold prices fell on Tuesday to their lowest levels in more than two weeks on easing concerns of an escalation in the Middle East crisis, and as investors booked profits while awaiting key U.S. data for fresh clues on the Federal Reserve's rate trajectory.

Spot gold was down nearly 1% at $2,304.99 per ounce, as of 0336 GMT. U.S. gold futures fell 1.2% to $2,318.80.

-Company’s Q4 earnings was slight beat to estimates
-Energy EBITDA stood out while retail was lower
-Net debt & capex intensity declined to lowest in 2 years with FCF of USD 1.3 billion in FY24
-See multiple catalysts for re-rating across verticals as company exits 4th investment cycle

Shish Industries: The company has signed a five-year commercial trade agreement, with the USA based entity Best Construction Products Inc (BCP). The company will supply a variety of agreed products crucial for construction purposes to BCP for 5 years amounting to minimum $37.5 million (approximately Rs 312 crore present value).

Sensex Today | Hindustan Motors, KPI Green Energy, Gensol Engineering among others locked at upper circuit

Quant Mutual Fund via Quant Small Cap Fund has bought 5.5 lakh equity shares (equivalent to 0.6% of paid-up equity) of Indraprastha Medical Corporation at an average price of Rs 249.59 per share via open market transactions, amounting to Rs 13.72 crore.

-Q4 consolidated EBITDA was a 20 bps beat at Rs 42,500 crore (+14.3 percent YoY)
-Q4 beat was driven by strong E&P & O2C growth
-Consolidated capex continued to moderate down 23 percent QoQ to Rs 23,200 crore
-Reported net debt of USD 14 billion, declined 8 percent YoY
-Jio net subscriber adds were robust at 10.9 m, focus now on 5G monetisation
-Retail continued to see margin improvement
-O2C EBIT expanded 20 percent QoQ

Sensex Today | Cummins, Max Financial, Voltas among midcap stocks, which touched 52-week high

Shares of PSP Projects rose around 4 percent in the opening trade on April 23 after the company launched a qualified institutions placement (QIP) in a bid to raise Rs 244 crore.

The company has fixed a floor price Rs 682.59 per share, though it may offer a discount of up to 5 percent to investors. The indicative issue price for the QIP is Rs 670. Read More

Tamilnad Mercantile Bank has reported net profit at Rs 253.06 crore for quarter ended March FY24, against profit of Rs 253.05 crore in corresponding period of last fiscal.

Net interest income grew by 7.5% year-on-year to Rs 567 crore for the quarter. Asset quality improved with the gross NPA falling 25 bps sequentially to 1.44% and net NPA declining 13 bps QoQ to 0.85% for the quarter.

Sensex Today | BSE Smallcap index up neatly 1 percent; Tejas Networks, Tata Teleservices, Oriental Aromatics

Shares of Grill Splendour Services were off to a slow start on its debut on April 23 after it listed at Rs 121.3, a premium of 1.08 percent over the issue price of Rs 120 on the NSE SME platform.

The listing missed grey market estimates, where shares were trading at Rs 128. The grey market is an unofficial ecosystem where shares start trading much before the offer opens for subscription and continue to trade till the listing day.

Shares of Ramdevbaba Solvent made a robust start on its debut on April 23 after listing at Rs 112. That's a premium of 31.76 percent over the issue price of Rs 85.

The listing gains top grey market estimates where shares were trading at a premium of 11 percent. The grey market is an unofficial ecosystem where shares start trading much before the offer opens for subscription and continue to trade till the listing day.

Shares of Tejas Networks hit 52-week high of Rs 1,046.95 on the NSE, a day after the company reported robust earnings for the quarter ended March 2024 with margins and revenue beating the Street estimates.

The company's consolidated net profit came in at Rs 146.78 for the quarter, compared to a loss of Rs 11.47 crore a year ago period, led by BSNL’s 4G project execution. The telecom equipment company saw growth in all product segments led by the wireless business. Read More

Mahindra Logistics has posted net loss at Rs 11.9 crore for quarter ended March FY24, against profit of Rs 0.20 crore in year-ago period, impacted by weak operating numbers. Consolidated revenue from operations for the quarter at Rs 1,450.8 crore grew by 14% over the same period last fiscal. \

Meanwhile, the board has approved re-appointment of Rampraveen Swaminathan as the Managing Director & Chief Executive Officer of the company, for five years, with effect from February 4, 2025.

Sensex Today | Market at 10 AM

The Sensex was up 221.65 points or 0.30 percent at 73,870.27, and the Nifty was up 61.10 points or 0.27 percent at 22,397.50. About 2028 shares advanced, 907 shares declined, and 98 shares unchanged.

Sensex Today | Except Nifty Metal, all other sectoral indices are trading in the green

Tata Consumer Products, Tata Elxsi, ICICI Prudential Life Insurance Company, Mahindra & Mahindra Financial Services, Mahindra EPC Irrigation, Multi Commodity Exchange of India, 360 ONE WAM, Cyient DLM, Huhtamaki India, LKP Securities, and NELCO will announce March FY24 quarter earnings on April 23.

Arun Jaura has resigned as Chief Technology Officer (CTO) of Hero MotoCorp, with effect from April 30.

Meanwhile, Vikram Kasbekar, in addition to his existing role as Head of Global Product Planning, will assume the responsibility of leading the R&D function.