Sensex, Nifty End Volatile 2018 On A Tepid Note

Indian equity benchmarks were little changed on last trading session of 2018 as gains in Tata Steel, Vedanta and Infosys were offset by losses in HDFC, Axis Bank, Maruti Suzuki and Reliance Industries.

The S&P BSE Sensex declined 8 points or 0.02 percent to 36,068 and the NSE Nifty 50 Index rose 3 points or 0.02 percent to 10,863.

Fifteen of 19 sector gauges compiled by BSE ended higher led by the S&P BSE Metal Index's 1.4 percent gain. On the flipside, S&P BSE Telecom Index was top loser, down 0.80 percent.

The mid- and small-cap shares outperformed their larger peers as the S&P BSE MidCap Index rose 0.51 percent and the S&P BSE SmallCap Index climbed 0.70 percent.

Shares of liquor manufacturers rose ahead of new year celebrations on last trading session of the calendar year.

Shares of the Mumbai-based construction company rose as much as 19.63 percent, the most since Aug. 20, to Rs 13.10.

Trading volume was more than 12 times its 20-day average, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

Over 1.32 crore shares changed hands on the BSE compared with an average of 5.46 lakh shares traded daily in the past two weeks, according to information on BSE's website.

• India Tourism Development Corporation: The Delhi-based tourism infrastructure developer rose as much as 12 percent, the most in over three months, to Rs 341.30. Trading volume was 30 times its 20-day average.
• Pfizer: The Mumbai-based healthcare company fell as much as 1.26 percent to Rs 2,761. Trading volume was more than nine times its 20-day average.
• Gujarat Gas: The Ahmedabad-based city gas distributor rose as much as 2.37 percent to Rs 679.75. Trading volume was more than 17 times its 20-day average.
• Brigade Enterprises: The Bengaluru-based real estate developer fell as much as 0.97 percent to Rs 218.50. Trading volume was five times its 20-day average.

Mid- and small-cap shares outperforming their larger peers as the S&P BSE MidCap and S&P BSE SmallCap Indices rose over 0.5 percent each.

Gains in the mid-cap space were led by KIOCL, Jindal Steel, Dewan Housing Finance and Container Corp.

While Dredging Corp, Butterfly Gandhimathi, Menon Bearings and MTNL were among top gainers in the small-cap space.

Shares of the Chandigarh-based steel wheel rim maker held on to gains and rose 1 percent to Rs 941.

The company secured an order worth Rs 46 crore from Volkswagen Mexico for supply of 3.5 lakh steel wheels which will be supplied from its Chennai plant, Steel Strips Wheels said in an exchange notification.

Indian equity benchmarks came off intraday high levels as Reliance Industries, HDFC, Kotak Mahindra Bank and Power Grid came under selling pressure.

The S&P BSE Sensex was little changed at 36,088 and the NSE Nifty 50 Index rose 0.1 percent or 7 points to 10,867.

Fifteen of 19 sector gauges compiled by BSE were trading higher led by the S&P BSE Metal Index's 1.35 percent. On the flipside, S&P BSE Energy Index was top loser, down 0.49 percent.

The overall market breadth was positive as 1,379 shares were advancing while 812 were declining on the BSE.

Shares of the state-run dredging services provider gained for the fourth straight session and rose as much as 18.63 percent to Rs 441 on heavy volumes.

Trading volume was more than 40 times its 20-day average, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

Over 5.17 lakh shares changed hands on the BSE compared with an average of 44,000 shares traded daily in the past twoo weeks, as per information on the BSE's website.

Shares of Kudremukh Iron Ore Company Limited (KIOCL) rallied as much as 13 percent to Rs 166.95 after Union Cabinet decided to sell stake in the company via Follow-on Public Offer (FPO).

The stock was top gainer among on the NSE Nifty 500 Index and saw heavy trading volumes.

Trading volume was more than 20 times its 20-day average, according to data compiled Bloomberg.

Over 6,500 shares changed hands on the BSE compared with an average of 1,100 shares traded daily in the past two weeks, according to information on the BSE's website.

Nifty's 11,000 call option contract was among the most active option contracts on the National Stock Exchange.

Premium on the contract rose 5 percent to Rs 144.65. Over 2.22 lakh shares were added to the open interest which stood at over 26.78 lakh shares.

• Indian equity benchmarks managed to hold gains after trading off day's low.
• The S&P BSE Sensex INdex rose 0.3 percent to 36,185.16 and the NSE Nifty 50 Index rose 0.37 percent to 10,900.25.
• About 1,129 stocks advanced and 643 shares declined on NSE.

Dhanuka Agritech Ltd. should be able to deliver single digit growth for the current financial year, its Managing Director MK Dhanuka said.

Key highlights from the conversation:

• Sowing for Rabi is less when compared with last year.
• Water levels are low, over all picture no very rosy.
• Should be able to deliver single digit growth for the current financial year.
• Will be depending on monsoon for Kharif season.
• Dealers are happy with the Kohinoor Scheme.
• Prices of raw materials have increased drastically.
• Profit to remain to flat for year, as it has been impacted by dollar and plant shut in China.
• Decision on the buybacks has yet to be taken by board.

Here are the key highlights from the conversation:

• GST slab being lowered is a positive move by the government.
• December sales were below expectation; expect next year to be better.
• Consumer durable industries are only based on sentiments.
• If oil and dollar remain steady, we will have a good 2019.
• Online sales in December were also below expectations.
• Footfalls have reduced and online sales have slowed.
• The company is not facing any liquidity issues.

Shares of the construction company extended gains for the fourth day and is set for its longest winning streak since Nov. 02. The stock rose as much as 0.74 percent to Rs 1,450.

The company won orders worth Rs 2,084 crore, according to its stock exchange filing.

The stock traded at 20.5 times its estimated forward earnings per share compared to 22.3 times for the two-year historical average, Bloomberg data showed.

Shares of the world’s largest coconut oil maker declined over 1 percent to Rs 374.

The government increased the Minimum Support Price for copra, that accounts for 40-50 percent of material costs, by Rs 2,000 per quintal for 2019, according to Bloomberg report. The MSP of Copra has been increased from Rs 7,511 per quintal to Rs 9,521.

The stock traded at 44.3 times its estimated forward earnings per share compared to 41.3 times for the two-year historical average, Bloomberg data showed.

Shares of the vitrified tiles maker fell 12.7 percent, the most in over two years, to Rs 162.20.

The company’s Promoter and Managing Director Mukeshbhai Patel was arrested by Directorate of Revenue Intelligence for a case related to an amount of Rs 3.5 crore. At Present, Patel is out on bail.

Trading volume was more than 60 times its 20-day average, Bloomberg data showed. Asian Granito traded at 14 times its estimated earnings per share for the coming year.

Shares of the Mukesh Ambani-led company rose as much as 0.7 percent to Rs 1,133.85.

The company entered into a binding agreement with Kanoda Energy Systems Pvt. Ltd. to acquire 88 percent equity for Rs 75 crore, according to its stock exchange notification. The company expects to complete the acquisition by March 2020.

The stock has returned 23.6 percent this year, compared to a 7.7 percent advance in the Sensex.

Indian equity benchmarks extended gains for the fourth day and are set for their longest winning streak in nearly two weeks.

The S&P BSE Sensex Index rose as much as 0.58 percent to 36,285.46 and the NSE Nifty 50 Index rose as much as 0.58 percent to 10,922.75.

The market breadth was tilted in favour of buyers. All the sectoral gauges compiled by NSE advanced, led by the NSE Nifty Media Index's 0.81 percent gain.

UBS Strategist Alexey Ostapchuk said, “According to our model, Thailand replaced China as the most-crowded EM. Korea, Taiwan, South Africa, Mexico, Qatar and Hungary also turned more crowded. In contrast, investor positioning eased in Brazil, Malaysia, Turkey, Colombia, and the Czech Republic.”

The Indian rupee extended gains for the second day against the U.S. dollar. The home currency appreciated as much as 0.27 percent to 69.74 against the greenback.

F&O Cues

• Nifty January futures closed trading at 10,907, premium of eight points.
• Max open interest for January series at 11,000 call option, (open interest at 26.5 lakh shares)
• Max open interest for January series at 10,500 put option, (open interest at 32.3 lakh shares)

Stocks In F&O Ban

• Adani Power

Put-Call Ratio

• Nifty PCR unchanged at 1.54.
• Nifty Bank PCR at 1.11 from 0.89.

UBS on JSW Energy

• Maintained ‘Sell’ with a price target of Rs 68.
• Cooling spot rates pose downside risks.
• Spot rates decline to Rs3.3/kWh in December.
• Market not pricing in medium term volume/realisation risks.

PhillipCapital on NCC

• Maintained ‘Buy’ with a price target of Rs 145.
• The first half of the current financial results was a testimony to strong fundamentals and expectations being met.
• Strong order inflow and orderbook, despite slowdown in road and metro segments.
• Current price to be an opportune time, to buy a stock with immense growth potential.

Emkay on SBI

• Maintained ‘Accumulate’ with a price target of Rs 345
• Growth acceleration, MCLR reset and NPA resolution to drive Q4 exit NIM of 2.9-3 percent.
• Earnings trajectory improving, but upcoming capital raise a minor irritant.
• Believe SBI offers a good near-term trade.

HDFC Securities on Consumer

• The current financial year is challenging for cooling products.
• Green shoots visible for building electricals.
• Small electrical appliances provide avenue for growth.
• Competitive intensity is rising in lighting.
• Top Picks: Voltas, Symphony and Crompton.

• Coal India record date for interim dividend at Rs 7.25 per share.
• Indo Rama Synthetics price band revised to 10 percent.

• Franklin Templeton MF acquired 51.82 lakh shares or 2.06 percent equity at Rs 59.51 each.
• Max Life Insurance sold 20 lakh shares or 0.80 percent equity at Rs 59.52 each.
• Nomura Trust and Nomura India Stock Mother Fund sold 35.46 lakh shares or 1.41 percent equity at Rs 59.51 each.

• 5:30 p.m.: November Eight Infrastructure Industries, prior 4.8 percent.

• Marico: Minimum Support Price for Copra has been hiked by over Rs 2,000 per quintal for 2019 season by CCEA. The MSP of Copra has been increased from Rs 7,511 per quintal to Rs 9,521 per quintal. (Bloomberg News-All India Radio)
• IDBI Bank allotted 239 crore shares via preferential issue to LIC at a price of Rs 60.73 per share aggregating to Rs 14,500 crores in tranche 1. This exercise is the part of ongoing acquisition of 51 percent controlling stake by LIC in IDBI Bank.
• Aavas Financiers received fresh refinance assistance of Rs 500 crore from National Housing Bank. The company says that this refinance will strengthen the liquidity position of the company and will provide a strong boost to retail home loan activities in semi-urban and rural areas.
• Power Grid Corporation entered into a loan agreement for 200 million euros with Germany’s KfW for financing of transmission project for integration of clean energy and system strengthening.
• Government conveyed its decision to invest Rs 5,500 crore in Oriental Bank of Commerce by way of preferential allotment. The meeting to consider this capital raise will be held on Jan. 2.
• JK Cement approved qualified institutional placement Issue price at Rs 695.8 per share which is at a discount of 5 percent to the floor price of Rs 732.42.
• CreditAccess Grameen completed a direct assignment transaction of Rs 176.59 crore. The company says that with this transaction, the entity has has completed five secularisation transactions and two direct assignment transaction amounting to Rs 909.70 crore in financial year 2019. The financial services company also stated that the entire pool qualifies for priority sector treatment as per the Reserve Bank of India’s Priority Sector lending guidelines.
• Rane Holdings increased its stake in its arm ‘Rane Madras Ltd.’ from 3.05 percent to 61.64 percent for a consideration of Rs 20 crore.
• Manali Petrochemicals clarified that there was no strike or lockout and no insurance cover based on notice received from the Pollution Control Board for closure of Plant 1 on Dec. 25. The company also stated that quantum of loss would depend on the period of closure and the company has taken actions for an early restart to recoup the production loss.
• Karnataka Bank raised its deposit interest rate by 10 basis points for domestic and NRE Rupee term deposits to 7.40 percent with effect from Dec. 28.
• Government conveyed its decision to invest Rs 1,632 crore in Syndicate Bank by way of preferential allotment of equity shares.
• Piramal Enterprises said it was considering raising Rs 100 crore via NCDs on Jan.2.
• Central Bank of India’s board approved raising Rs 200 crore via employee stock option.
• Ashok Leyland changed its object clause in which the company will engage in the business of developing, manufacturing and selling light commercial vehicles up to 7.5 tonne gross vehicle weight, power train for LCVs, and spare parts in India and other countries. This change in object clause comes after NCLT approved the order of amalgamating its three arms with as on Dec. 17.
• Omaxe clarified that the NCLT issuing contempt notice against its CMD Rohtas Goel was wrongly interpreted as the notice is related in Buildwell Builders Pvt. Ltd., where Rohtas Goel is the director as well as the shareholder. There is no effect on the operations or the performance from the above news as stated by the company.
• Bank of Baroda to consider raising funds on Jan. 02 through Basel III compliant tier II bonds.
• Tata Investment Corporation fixed Jan.11 as the record date for buy-back.
• Infibeam Avenues terminated the proposed acquisition in the entire stake of Unicommerce, as the conditions precedent were not fulfilled within stipulated time period.
• NLC India commissioned 1000 MW (2*500 MW) of thermal power project. The project has been completed in four months as against a target of six months.
• Asian Granito’s promoter and MD was arrested by Directorate of Revenue Intelligence for a case related to an amount of Rs 3.5 crore. Currently Mukeshbhai Patel is out on bail.
• Fortis Healthcare: Pursuant to share issue, IHH prefers to align its auditors on a group wide basis which may streamline the audit process and bring in efficiencies. After due consideration, Deloitte – the statutory auditors – have tendered their resignation.
• Cadila Healthcare: received final approval from the U.S. FDA to sell an anti-acne medication. The drug will be made in Ahmedabad facility.
• Bank of India: Government to infuse Rs 10,086 crore via equity in the bank. Board to consider resolution for the same on Jan. 02.
• Bharat Financial Inclusion: NBFC assigned a pool of receivables of an aggregate value of Rs 849.36 crore to private sector banks on a direct assignment basis. With this transaction, the Company has completed five direct assignment transactions worth Rs 3,864.91 crore in the current financial year.
• Kotak Mahindra Bank in focus today as it is the RBI deadline date for owner Uday Kotak to cut stake in the company.

• West Texas Intermediate crude gained 0.4 percent to $45.52 a barrel, extending a 1.6 percent advance Friday.
• Brent crude jumped 2.3 percent higher to $53.41 per barrel.
• Gold dipped 0.1 percent to $1,279.28 an ounce.

London Metal Exchange

• Aluminium ended lower for the fifth day, down 0.35 percent.
• Copper ended higher for the second day, up 0.2 percent.
• Zinc resumed declines, ended 2.2 percent lower.
• Nickel ended lower for the second day, down 0.3 percent.
• Lead ended higher for the third day, up 1.6 percent.
• Tin resumed rally after a one-day blip, up 0.9 percent.

Good Morning!

The Singapore-traded SGX Nifty, an early indicator of NSE Nifty 50 Index’s performance in India, rose 0.41 percent to 10,966 as of 8 a.m.

Asian stocks, closing in on their worst year since 2011, got some relief on the last day of 2018 after U.S. President Donald Trump reported “big progress” in trade talks with his Chinese counterpart.

Equities gained in Hong Kong and Australia, along with S&P 500 Index futures. Trading will be thin with major markets in Japan and China closed and shortened sessions.

Short on time? Well, then listen to this podcast for a quick summary of All You Need To Know before the opening bell.