Sensex, Nifty Close At Record Aided By Gains In I.T., FMCG Stocks

India's stock benchmarks closed at record, aided by gains in I.T., FMCG, consumer durables and real estate stocks. Focus now shifts to key U.S. payroll report due later today to assess the strength of the economic recovery and a possible timeline for U.S. Federal Reserve for paring stimulus.

The S&P BSE Sensex gained 0.90% to a 57,852.54, highest ever close. The 30-stock index rose to a record 57,892.37 in intraday trade. The NSE Nifty 50 advanced by similar magnitude to 17,234.15. This is the first ever close for Nifty 50 above 17,200. The 50-stock index hit a record 17,245.50 in intraday trade. Tata Consultancy Services Ltd. contributed the most to the index gain, increasing 3.3%. Shree Cement Ltd. had the largest increase, rising 6.5%. Today, 37 of 50 shares rose, while 13 fell.

The broader indices almost mirrored their larger peers with the S&P BSE MidCap and S&P BSE SmallCap gaining over 0.8%. Barring S&P BSE Auto and S&P BSE Oil & Gas, all the other 15 sectoral indices compiled by the BSE Ltd. advanced, with S&P BSE FMCG, S&P BSE Information Technology, S&P BSE Consumer Durables adding over 1.5%.

The market breadth was skewed in favour of bulls. About 1,980 stocks advanced, 1,214 declined and 146 remained unchanged.

"Markets were back in action after yesterday's small correction and benchmark Nifty found support near 17,050 level. After a muted opening the index successfully cleared the intraday resistance of 17,150 and is comfortably trading above the same which is largely positive. The intraday rally indicates further uptrend from the current levels but the market has formed a double top kind of formation. For the trend following traders, 17,150 would be the key support level, and above the same the uptrend structure could continue up to 17,300-17,350 levels. On the flip side, if the Nifty slips below 17,150, it may trigger a quick intraday correction till 17,100-1,7075 levels",Shrikant Chouhan, Executive Vice President, Equity Technical Research, Kotak Securities Ltd. wrote in a note

Shares of Container Corporation of India Ltd. added 7.20%, the most in a month, to Rs 738.10 apiece.

• Trading volume was 4.26 million shares, triple the 20-day average of 1.59 million shares for this time of the day.

• Container Corp trades at 41 times its estimated earnings per share for the coming year.

• Analysts have 23 'buy', nine 'hold' and four 'sell' recommendations on the stock.

Adani Green Energy Ltd. raised $750 million to fully fund its equity needs for its under construction pipeline as it continued to ramp up focus on ESG. It has priced its maiden ListCo senior green bond issuance of $750 million through 3-year notes, at a fixed coupon of 4.375%. The issuance was oversubscribed 4.7 times.

According to the company’s exchange release, the funds will be used for equity portion of capex for under construction projects. Under the structure, Adani Green Energy can draw up to $1,700 million over the course of time subject to the covenants of the structure. The notes were rated Ba3 (stable) by Moodys. The entire pipeline is now funded, thereby setting the stage for the company to become the world’s largest renewable energy platform by 2030.

Vineet Jain, MD & CEO of Adani Green Energy said that the oversubscription is testimony of the confidence of overseas investors on the company.

Vakrangee Ltd. has renewed its agreement with the Indian Bank Ltd. to provide BC banking and end-to-end financial inclusion services for pan India at Vakrangee Kendra outlets.

• Vakrangee has over 13,000 Banking BC points and is the fourth largest ATM operator in rural India with over 5,400 ATMs.

• According to an exchange filing by Vakrangee, the renewal with Indian Bank would ensure sustainable growth and activation of Banking BC point services at all Kendras across the country.

• Shares of Vakrangee added over 3% to Rs 40.15 apiece.

Housing & Urban Development Corp. is higher for the eighth straight day, on track for the longest winning streak in nearly 2 years. HUDCO has gained a total of 9.9%

Since May 2017, there have been three rallies of seven days, one rally of 8 days and one rally of nine days.

Adani Transmission Ltd. is higher for the 15th straight day, on track for the longest winning streak since the period ended October 2017.

• Shares of Adani Trans advanced 77% during the streak while the Sensex rose 5.9%.

• Since 2015, there has been one rally of 14 days and one rally of 16 days.

• The relative strength index on the stock was at 90, suggesting that the stock may be overbought.

Shares of Tata Power Co Ltd. advanced 1% to Rs 134.80 apiece after the company received Letter of Award, LoA, from Rewa Ultra Mega Solar Ltd (RUMSL), to build 330 MW of solar project in Neemuch solar park of Madhya Pradesh.

• The project was awarded after tariff-based competitive bidding followed by e-Reverse auction, the company said in an exchange filing.

• The total renewable capacity of Tata Power after this project will reach 4,361 MW with an installed capacity of 2,947 MW and 1,414 MW under implementation.

• Of the 23 analysts tracking the company, 18 maintained ‘buy’, 2 maintained ‘hold’ and 3 maintained ‘sell’ recommendations. The overall consensus price of analysts tracked by Bloomberg implied an upside of 8.8%

Shares of Tata Consultancy Services Ltd. rose 3.64% to Rs 3,850 apiece.

• Trading volume was 1.92 million shares, 93% of the 20-day average of 2.07 million shares for this time of the day.

• The relative strength index on the stock was above 70, indicating it may be overbought.

• Analysts have 32 ‘buy’, 11 ‘hold’ and seven ‘sell’ recommendations on the stock.

Bharti Airtel Ltd. said that it has successfully conducted India’s first cloud gaming session in a 5G environment. The demonstration was conducted as part of ongoing 5G trials using spectrum allotted by Department of Telecom, the company said in an exchange filing.

Randeep Sekhon, CTO at Bharti Airtel said that cloud gaming would be one of the biggest use cases of 5G and this is just the beginning of Airtel’s digital future as it prepares for 5G rollout.

Airtel is conducting 5G trials in multiple cities and has partnered with Ericsson and Nokia for these trials.

Shares of Voltas Ltd. rose 5% to Rs 1,098 apiece, higher than any close since June 7. Trading volume was triple the average for this time of day.

• The relative strength index on the stock was above 70, suggesting it may be overbought.

• Voltas shares have risen for the fifth straight session.

• Voltas trades at 55 times its estimated earnings per share for the coming year.

• Analysts have 26 'buy', 10 'hold' and six 'sell' recommendations on the stock.

In a note, research firm Credit Suisse picked up Havells India Ltd. and Voltas Ltd., as the companies with the highest potential based on their foothold already established in the Indian electric and consumer durables sector.

Shares of luggage maker VIP Industries Ltd. gained after its chairman Dilip Piramal told CNBC-TV18 that domestic travel is headed toward normalcy after disruptions caused by Covid-19.

• Shares rise as much as 8.35%, most since August 12, to Rs 498.70 apiece; trading volume was more than double the 3-month, full-day average

• Dilip Piramal: Domestic travel is recovering, international trips remain low.

Shares of Chemplast Sanmar Ltd. gained 3.31% to Rs 620 apiece after the company completed early redemption of redeemable non-convertible secured debentures, as on August 31.

According to an exchange filing by the company post market hours Wednesday, the redemption of the NCDs amounted to Rs 1,238.25 crore and was part of the objective of the primary issue.

“Using the net proceeds of the OFS received by Selling Shareholders Sanmar Holdings Ltd. and Sanmar Engineering Services Ltd. (SESL) , the term loan availed by SESL from HDFC Ltd has been fully repaid”, according to the company’s filing.

Chemplast Sanmar shares have risen for six consecutive sessions, with the stock gaining nearly 16%.

Shares of Bajaj Healthcare Ltd. rose 3.4% to Rs 910 apiece on the BSE, after the company announced it will start commercial production of Nimesulide API at MIDC, Tarapur.

Nimesulide API is used for relief from pain and prevention of fever. The company has received approval from FDA Maharashtra to manufacture and market the API and the commercial production will begin tomorrow, Bajaj Healthcare said in an exchange filing.

The engineering and manufacturing units at MIDC, Tarapur were acquired from Saraswat Cooperative Bank in FY21, under the SARFAESI Act, 2002. The company has received an approval to start commercial production in one of the manufacturing units.

Shares of Kotak Mahindra Bank Ltd. added over 1.5% to Rs 1,773.65 apiece after the lender informed the exchanges post market hours Wednesday that it completed the sale of 20,00,00,000 equity shares, accounting for 8.57% shareholding on a fully diluted basis, of Airtel Payments Bank Ltd. to Bharti Enterprises Ltd.

Kotak Mahindra Bank said it completed the transaction for an aggregate sale consideration of Rs 294.8 crore on August 31. The stock was among the top gainers in Nifty Bank Index.

Of the 46 analysts tracking the company, 24 maintained ‘buy’, 16 maintained ‘hold’ and 6 maintained ‘sell’ recommendations. The overall consensus price of analysts tracked by Bloomberg implied an upside of 6.5%.

Aditya Birla Fashion & Retail Ltd. rose 5.77% to Rs 220 apiece.

• Trading in the company's call options was five times the average.

• Trading volume was 3.17 million shares, triple the 20-day average of 1.27 million shares for this time of day.

• Of the 25 analysts tracking the company, 21 analysts maintained 'buy', 3 maintained 'hold' and 1 maintained 'sell' recommendations.

• The overall consensus price of analysts tracked by Bloomberg implied an upside of 13.6%.

Shares of Delta Corp Ltd. surges as much as 13.8%, most intraday gains in 9 months, to record Rs 215 apiece after the stock along with seven others was included for trading in the futures & options segment from Oct. 1.

• Best performer on NIFTY Smallcap 100, S&P BSE 500 indexes

• Casino Operator extended gain to 5th day

• Trading volume >11 times three-month full-day average

• 14-day RSI at 74.02; RSI above 70 may indicate the stock is overbought

• Other stocks included: Dalmia Bharat; JK Cement

India's stock benchmarks advanced, aided by gains in banking, FMCG and pharma stocks.

The S&P BSE Sensex rose 0.55% to 57,651.76. The 30-stock index had hit a record 57,671.72 in intraday trade. The NSE Nifty 50 advanced by similar magnitude to 17,177.60. Reliance Industries Ltd. contributed the most to the index gain, increasing 0.9%. HDFC Life Insurance Co. had the largest increase, rising 7.6%.

The broader indices outperformed their larger peers with the S&P BSE MidCap and S&P BSE SmallCap gaining 0.8%. Barring S&P BSE Utilities index, all the other 18 sectoral indices compiled by the BSE Ltd. advanced, with S&P BSE Consumer Durables and S&P BSE FMCG adding 1.5%.

The market breadth was skewed in favour of bulls. About 2,018 stocks advanced, 1,040 declined and 136 remained unchanged.

• The Indian rupee gains for a third day this week amid hopes of continuous inflows into local stocks. Sovereign bonds are marginally lower.

• USD/INR falls 0.2% to 72.9775; pair is down ~1% this week so far; benchmark stocks index gained 0.5% Thursday.

• Global funds bought net Rs 667 crore of stocks Wednesday; they were net buyers of Rs 725 crore of bonds under the normal category and Rs 370 crore under the FAR category: CCIL data

• 10-year yields up 1bp to 6.2%; 5-year yield rises 1bp to 5.62%

Vijaya Diagnostic Centre Ltd. continued to see muted demand for its initial public offering on the second of subscription. The IPO was subscribed 0.35 times as of 12 p.m. on Sept. 2.

Subscription Details: Day 2

The IPO was subscribed 0.42 times as of 3:05 p.m. on Sept. 2

• Institutional investors: 0.26 times

• Non-institutional investors: 0.03 times

• Retail investors: 0.67 times

• Employees: 0.43 times

Investor interest in Ami Organics Ltd.’s Rs 570-crore initial public offering further picked up on the second day of subscription. The IPO was subscribed 2.45 times as of 12 p.m. on Sept. 2.

Subscription Details: Day 2

The IPO was subscribed 3.23 times as of 3:05 p.m. on Sept. 2

• Institutional investors: 1.39 times

• Non-institutional investors: 0.88 times

• Retail investors: 5.27 times

Follow the live subscription updates here:

• Vijaya Diagnostic Centre IPO Subscription Updates Day 2

• Ami Organics IPO Subscription Updates Day 2

Shares of V-Mart Retail Ltd. added 3.70% to Rs 3,758 apiece after the company added 77 stores of ‘Unlimited’ in South and West India. The overall stock count pan-India has risen to 363 with this addition.

In an exchange filing, V-Mart said that it opened four new stores (two in Bihar and one each in Delhi & Uttar Pradesh) and also close one store in Rajasthan in August.

Of the 26 analysts tracking the company, 18 maintained ‘buy’, 4 maintained ‘hold’ and 2 maintained ‘sell’ recommendations. Fifteen analysts revised the price targets higher while one analyst revised the price targets lower over the past three months. The overall consensus price of analysts tracked by Bloomberg implied an upside of 2.9%.

Shares of Just Dial Ltd. advanced nearly 4%, the most in over 5 weeks, to Rs 995 apiece after the company’s board approved the allotment of 2,11,77,636 equity shares of the company of face value of Rs 10 each, fully paid-up by way of preferential allotment on private placement basis to Reliance Retail Ventures Ltd. The cash consideration amounted to Rs 1,022.25 per share aggregating to approximately Rs 2,165 crore.

Of the 16 analysts tracking the company, 9 maintained ‘buy’, 1 maintained ‘hold’ and 6 maintained ‘sell’ recommendations. The overall consensus price of analysts tracked by Bloomberg implied an upside of 11.7%.

Most yields along the India sovereign yield curve rose, with 4-year bonds moving the most in morning trading.

• The 3-year yield fell 0.7bps to 4.444%

• The 10-year yield rose 0.5bps to 6.204%

• The 14-year yield was little changed at 6.751%

• The 3-year-10-year yield spread was 176bps, vs previous close 174.7bps

Shares of Adani Ports & Special Economic Zone Ltd. added over 2% to Rs 760.65 apiece after the company said that it handled a cargo volume of 23.32 million metric tonnes (MMT) at its ports in the month of August.

In an exchange filing, the company said that the cargo volume registered a 21% growth in August on YoY basis.

Of the 25 analysts tracking the company, 22 maintained ‘buy’ and 3 maintained ‘sell’ recommendations. The overall consensus price of analysts tracking the company implied an upside of 13.1%.

• Shares of KPR Mill Ltd. rose 8%, the most in 20 weeks to Rs 1,920 apiece.

• Trading volume was 52,962 shares, triple the 20-day average of 16,932 shares for this time of the day.

• KPR Mill trades at 20 times its estimated earnings per share for coming year.

• Analysts have six ‘buy’, no ‘hold’ and no ‘sell’ recommendations on the stock.

Shares of Minda Corporation Ltd. climbed 4.73% to Rs 129.45 apiece after the company’s wholly owned subsidiary Spark Minda Green Mobility Systems signed shares subscription and shareholders agreement with EVQPOINT Solution Pvt Ltd.

EVQPOINT provides smart EV charging products and solutions to meet the needs in eMobility market. It manufactures EV portable chargers, DC fast chargers, and smart charging stations. It is a start-up entity with authorized share capital of Rs 10 lakh and paid up capital of Rs 2 lakh.

Spark Minda Green will subscribe for allotment of 26% of equity share capital of EVQPOINT. The two companies have also entered into a Technology License Agreement and Joint Collaboration & Technical Assistance Agreement. The collaboration is expected to strengthen Spark Minda’s EV Supply Equipment portfolio.

All the nine analysts tracking the company maintained ‘buy’ recommendations. The overall consensus price of analysts tracked by Bloomberg implied an upside of 25.7%.

Shares of Mahindra & Mahindra shed 1.5% to Rs 758.55 apiece after the automotive division of the company continued to face supply shortages of semiconductor which has led to production cuts, the company informed the exchanges.

The company will observe ‘No Production Days’ of around 7 days in its Automotive Division plants in September. This is estimated to result in reduction in production volumes of the Automotive Division for the month, by 20-25%.

M&M said that it is taking several cost optimization measures to minimize the impact due to the production cut. The company also clarified that the production cut will have no material impact on the XUV700 production ramp-up and launch plans. The disruption will also not impact the company’s tractor operations, exports, trucks and buses business and 3-wheeler production.

Of the 41 analysts tracking the company, 36 maintained ‘buy’ and 5 maintained ‘sell’ recommendations. The overall consensus price of analysts tracked by Bloomberg implied an upside of 24.1%

Reliance Industries Ltd. clarified that it won’t be able to comment on media report regarding the acquisition of Europe’s largest solar paner manufacturer, REC Group. The report appeared in Business Today on August 31.

Reliance Industries said it evaluated various opportunities on an ongoing basis, in an exchange filing.

Shares of Morepen Laboratories Ltd. added over 11% to Rs 57 apiece after the company approved the transfer of medical devices business on a slump sale basis by allotment of equity shares of Rs 10 each to a wholly owned subsidiary, which is under process of incorporation.

In an exchange filing post market hours Wednesday, Morepen Laboratories said that the revenue and profit derived from the new subsidiary will be consolidated in the parent company. The business transfer agreement with the subsidiary will be signed after the receipt of shareholders approval.

The aggregate consideration for the medical devices business is valued at Rs 55 crore. The said consideration will be discharged by the subsidiary by way of issuance of 5.5 crore equity shares of face value of Rs 10 each to the company.

Trading volume on the stock was 5.4 times the 30-day average for this time of the day

Shares of Natco Pharma Ltd. advanced 4.43% to Rs 982.60 apiecce after the company’s subsidiary Natco Pharma (Canada) Inc. announced the launch of lenalidomide capsules after receiving the approval of Health Canada.

About 7,400 Canadians are living with or are in remission from myeloma and every day nine Canadians are diagnosed with the disease.

Of the 15 analysts tracking the company, seven maintained ‘buy’, four maintained ‘hold’ and 3 maintained ‘sell’ recommendations. The overall consensus price of analysts tracked by Bloomberg implied an upside of 13%

Shares of HDFC Life Insurance Co. Ltd. rose 2.8% to Rs 738.75 apiece, higher than any close since March 9. Trading volume was double the average for this time of day. This is the ninth consecutive session in which the stock has advanced.

Board of directors of HDFC Life will consider fund raising plans. The board will consider 'the issue of equity shares and/or other securities by way of preferential allotment' on Friday, according to an exchange filing by the company on August 31.

• The stock was the best performer among its peers.

• Relative strength index on the stock was above 70, indicating it may be overbought.

• HDFC Life trades at 98 times its estimated earnings per share for the coming year.

• Analysts have 28 'buy', nine 'hold' and 'two' sell recommendations on the stock.

Shares of Dr Reddy’s Laboratories Ltd. added nearly 3% to Rs 4,904.40 apiece after the company announced the launch of Lenalidomide drug for the Canadian market.

In an exchange filing Thursday, DR Reddy’s said that Reddy-Lenalidomide, a generic equivalent to Revlimid capsules has been launched in Canadian market after getting the approval of Health Canada.

The capsules are used to treat patients with multiple myeloma (a common form of blood cancer) and transfusion-dependent anaemia. The approval is based on red blood cell (RBC) transfusion independence response rates.

Of the 43 analysts tracking the company, 34 maintained ‘buy’, 7 maintained ‘hold’ and 2 maintained ‘sell’ recommendations. The overall consensus price of analysts tracked by Bloomberg implied an upside of 12.1%

Shares of Kitex Garments Ltd. added 10% to Rs 164.10 apiece after the company’s expansion plan was approved by the Government of Telangana.

In an exchange filing post market hours Wednesday, Kitex Garments confirmed the approval of its expansion proposal and said that the order of approval will be issued within a few days by the Telangana government.

Trading volume was 3.4 times the 30-day average for this time of the day. The company’s strategic activity over the past 3 months included 4 M&A deals, 3 investments in the past 3 months. Shares of Kitex Garments rose 43.7% in 2021 vs 21.2% for the Sensex.

India's stock benchmarks opened higher, aided by gains in pharma stocks. Investors await key U.S. payroll report due later today to assess the strength of the economic recovery and a possible timeline for paring stimulus.

The S&P BSE Sensex rose 0.17% to a 57,435.40. The NSE Nifty 50 advanced by similar magnitude to 17,106.35. Reliance Industries Ltd. contributed the most to the index gain, increasing 0.4%. Dr Reddy's Laboratories Ltd. had the largest increase, rising 2.9%.

The broader indices outperformed their larger peers with the S&P BSE MidCap and S&P BSE SmallCap gaining 0.4%. Fifteen out of the 19 sectoral indices compiled by the BSE Ltd. advanced, with S&P BSE Consumer Durables adding 0.8%

The market breadth was skewed in favour of bulls. About 1,473 stocks advanced, 595 declined and 86 remained unchanged.

• Raises $600 million at coupon rate of 4.1%.

• Issue proceeds to be used towards financing eligible green/social projects.

Source: Exchange Notification

Equinix Inc., global digital infrastructure company has closed the purchase of two data centers in India, according to a press release.

Equinix has extended Platform Equinix into the strategic Indian market, following the completion of the acquisition of the India operations of GPX Global Systems Inc.

Indian bonds may open with a positive bias after the overnight drop in U.S. yields and global oil prices following a decision by OPEC+ to stay with a plan to boost production.

• 10-year yields fell 2bps to 6.2% on Wednesday

• USD/INR rose 0.1% to 73.0875

• GST revenues were steady as economic activity continued its recovery, Kotak Mahindra Bank economists including Upasna Bhardwaj, wrote in a note.

• Meanwhile, the center’s finances remain in control led by robust tax collections and muted government spending. We remain optimistic on the center’s fiscal situation and estimate FY2022E GFD/GDP at 6.4% compared to our earlier estimate of 6.8%.

• Global funds buy net Rs 667 crore of India stocks Wednesday: NSE

• Global funds bought Rs 724 crore of sovereign bonds under limits available to foreign investors, and withdrew Rs 79 crore of corporate debt

• State-run banks sold Rs 457 crore of sovereign bonds on September 1: CCIL data. Foreign banks bought Rs 851 crore of bonds.

Asian stocks were steady on Thursday as investors await key U.S. employment data to assess when the Federal Reserve may start paring the substantial stimulus that has bolstered financial markets.

Equities rallied in Hong Kong amid a continuing rebound in Chinese technology stocks on bets that the pressure from Beijing’s regulatory crackdown has peaked. China’s market climbed, with traders assessing a central bank step to cushion the economy by helping smaller firms. Commodity-reliant Australia’s stock index slid on weakness in materials like iron ore.

U.S. equity futures fluctuated. Overnight, the Nasdaq 100 edged up to an all-time high and the S&P 500 was little changed. The defensive flavor to trading came amid economic data suggesting a slower U.S. labour market recovery.

10-year U.S. Treasury yields remained around 1.30%. The U.S. payrolls report on Friday will offer clues on the economy and a possible timeline for a reduction in the Fed’s $120 billion of monthly bond purchases. The dollar held a drop.

India’s SGX Nifty 50 Index futures for September delivery rose 0.1% to 17,121.50, while MSCI Asia Pacific Index also edged up 0.1%. The NSE Nifty 50 Index fell 0.3% on Wednesday to 17,076.25.

Investors are trying to assess when the delta-variant virus outbreak might peak as well as the implications of reduced central bank policy support in the months ahead. Global stocks are near record levels and gauges of implied financial market volatility are declining, suggesting many remain optimistic that the reopening from the health crisis will weather challenges. Oil slipped in the wake of a relatively harmonious OPEC+ decision to gradually raise supply.

Back home, Indigo Paints, IPCA Lab, Karnataka Bank are holding their annual shareholder meetings. Foreign investors bought net Rs 2,810 crore of stocks, according to NSDL website.