Sensex, Nifty Close At Record Highs Aided By Bharti Airtel, Bajaj Finance

India’s stock benchmarks closed at record aided by gains in telecom, technology, metals and banking stocks. Investors will look forward to India’s GDP data scheduled to be released later today, to assess the pace of economic recovery.

The S&P BSE Sensex advanced 1.16% to 57,552.39. The 30-stock index rose to a record 57,625.26 levels in intraday trade. The NSE Nifty 50 advanced by a similar magnitude to 17,132.20. The 50-stock index crossed 17,000 for the first time ever and hit a record 17,153.50 in intraday trade. Bharti Airtel Ltd. contributed the most to the index gain and had the largest move, increasing 7.0%. Today, 44 of 50 shares rose, while 6 fell.

The broader indices underperformed their larger peers with both the S&P BSE MidCap and the S&P BSE SmallCap gaining over 0.8%. All the 19 sectoral indices compiled by the BSE Ltd. advanced, with S&P BSE Telecom gaining nearly 5%. S&P BSE Teck, S&P BSE Consumer Durables, and S&P BSE Utilities added over 1.5%

The market breadth was skewed in favour of bears. About 1,571 stocks advanced, 1,625 declined and 145 remained unchanged.

“Nifty surpassed 17,000 levels within a month. Sustained buying momentum across all sectors and favourable global cues aided markets. Bharti Airtel was in focus again as clarity over fund raising and indication of tariff hike led stock to gain over 7% today”, Binod Modi wrote in a note. The Head Strategy at Reliance Securities also noted “no mention about actual timeframe for reversal of US$120bn monthly asset purchase programme by Mr. Powell in Jackson Hole Symposium and indications of no interest rate hike in the medium term essentially show that taper tantrum is still not in the sight in the near term, which augurs well for global equities.”

Shares of Infibeam Avenues, a Mumbai-listed provider of digital payment solutions, advanced 19.92%, the most in five months, to Rs 47.85 apiece after its larger rival BillDesk was acquired by technology investment firm Prosus NV for $4.7 billion.

• Co. aims to have overall Total Payments Volumes (TPV) of $100 billion over the next 4-5 year versus $13.8 billion for the year ended March , Managing Director Vishal Mehta said in annual report for FY21

The Indian rupee gained past 73 to a U.S. dollar for the first time since June amid a risk-on sentiment and inflows into local stocks.

U.S. Dollar/Indian Rupee down 0.3% to 73.0250 after touching 72.9875, the lowest since June 11.

• Shares of Bajaj Finance Ltd. climbed 5.27%, the most in 12 weeks, to Rs 7,543 apiece.

• Trading volume was 2.45 million shares, 96% above the 20-day average of 1.25 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 14 'buy', 9 'hold' and 7 'sell' recommendations on the stock. The overall consensus price of analysts tracked by Bloomberg implied a downside of 19.9%.

Shares of Eicher Motors Ltd. advanced 5.11%, the most in four months, to Rs 2,684.40 apiece.

• Trading volume was 1.95 million shares, 74% above the 20-day average of 1.12 million shares for this time of the day.

• Eicher Motors trades at 36 times its estimated earnings per share for the coming year.

• Analysts have 20 'buy', 10 'hold' and 14 'sell' recommendations on the stock.

• The overall consensus price of analysts tracked by Bloomberg implied an upside of 2.2%.

Shares of Whirlpool India Ltd. added 5.16%, the most in 11 weeks, to Rs 2,130 apiece.

Trading volume was 2,04,272 shares, 69% above the 20-day average of 1,21,220 shares for this time of the day.

Analysts have 7 'buy', 2 'hold' and 6 'sell' recommendations on the stock. The overall consensus price of analysts tracked by Bloomberg implied an upside of 4.7%.

Shares of SRF Ltd. advanced nearly 6% to Rs 10,286.20 apiece after the company approved bonus issue of equity shares in the proportion of 4 shares of Rs 10 each for every 1 share of Rs 10 each held by the shareholders, according to an exchange filing by the company after the conclusion of the board meeting.

Details of Share Capital: Pre & Post Issue

Pre-Bonus Paid Up Share Capital

• Rs 59,24,52,050 divided into 5,92,45,205 shares of Rs 10 each

Post-Bonus Paid Up Share Capital

• Rs 296,22,60,250 divided into 29,62,26,025 shares of Rs 10 each.

Of the 25 analysts tracking the company, 17 maintained 'buy', 5 maintained 'hold' and 3 maintained 'sell' recommendations. The overall consensus price of analysts tracked by Bloomberg implied a downside of 13.0%.

The relative strength index on the stock was 84, suggesting that it may be overbought.

HDFC Life Insurance Co. is higher for the seventh straight day, on track for the longest winning streak since the period ended Dec. 26, 2019.

• HDFC Life has gained a total of 6.9% during the streak. Today, the stock rose 0.2% to Rs 713.80.

• The relative strength index on the stock was at 73; suggesting it may be overbought.

• Of the 39 analysts tracking the company, 28 maintained 'buy', 9 maintained 'hold' and 2 maintained 'sell' recommendations.

• The overall consensus price of analysts tracked by Bloomberg implied an upside of 9%.

InterGlobe Aviation Ltd. is higher for the seventh straight day, on track for the longest winning streak since the company went public in 2015.

• IndiGo has gained a total of 13% during the streak while the S&P BSE Sensex Index increased 3.6%. Today, the stock rose 3% to Rs 1,873.30 apiece.

• According to the Bloomberg Events Calendar, recent or upcoming events for IndiGo include Annual General Meeting on Thursday,

• The Relative strength index on the stock was at 74; suggesting it may be overbought

• Of the 22 analysts tracking the company, 11 maintained 'buy', 3 maintained 'hold' and 8 maintained 'sell' recommendations. The overall consensus price of analysts tracked by Bloomberg implied a downside of 7%.

Shares of AU Small Finance Bank Ltd. declined 10%, the most in nearly 5 months, to Rs 1,164.70 apiece. CNBC-TV18 reported, quoting sources, that Sumit Dhir, Head Internal Audit at Jaipur Head Office may have resigned.

• Trading volume was 2.31 million shares, double the 20-day average of 1.05 million shares for this time of the day.

• AU Small Finance Bank trades at 41 times its estimated earnings per share for the coming year.

• Analysts have 13 'buy', 8 'hold' and 5 'sell' recommendations on the stock.

• The overall consensus price of analysts tracking the company implied an upside of 4.2%

• AU Small Finance Bank appointed Deepak Jain as Chief Risk Officer for a period of three years with effect from September 1. Deepak Jain will replace Alok Gupta, who resigned for personal reasons.

Shares of Max Healthcare Institute Ltd. rose 10.5% to Rs 398.85 apiece. The shares increased to Rs 398.85 rupees from Rs 361.

• Trading volume was 2.19 million shares, 14% above the 20-day verage of 1.92 million shares for this time of day.

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

• Max Healthcare trades at 49 times its estimated earnings per share for the coming year.

• Analysts have 4 'buy', 1 'hold' and no 'sell' recommendations on the stock.

• The average consensus price of analysts tracked by Bloomberg implied a downside of 5.8%.

Shares of Subex Ltd. advanced 5.31% to Rs 53.55 apiece after the company extended its partnership with Robi, one of the largest telecom operators in Bangladesh, to support their 5G ambition and upgrade its existing integrated Revenue Assurance and Fraud Management (iRAFM) system.

This upgrade will help Robi to leverage the AI/ML (Artificial Intelligence/Machine Learning) capabilities of Subex’s iRAFM system and tackle the new-age telecom threats besides enhancing customer experience.

Here's what Subex’s AI Enabled iRAFM Brings To Robi

• Ensure faster time-to-market, ease-of-use, and reduced costs.

• Roll out new 5G services to customers quickly while maintaining the quality of service.

• Leverage Subex’s artificial intelligence capabilities to get real-time customer insights.

• Increase scalability and flexibility to handle the evolving fraud landscape and improve RoI from new 5G services.

• Infosys Ltd.'s long-term rating was upgraded by S&P to A.

• Infosys' long-term rating previously at A-.

• S&P On Infosys: Outlook remains stable.

• Of the 49 analysts tracking the company, 42 maintained 'buy', 4 maintained 'hold' and 3 maintained 'sell' recommendations.

• The overall consensus price of analysts tracked by Bloomberg implied an upside of 3.4%

Shares of Aptech Ltd. advanced 9% to an over 3-year high of Rs 315.35 apiece ahead of the meeting of board of directors scheduled to be held later today. The board is likely to conduct business transactions to introduce/launch new online business for the company.

• The relative strength index on the stock was 72, suggesting it may be overbought.

• Trading volume was 5.5 times the 30 day average for this time of the day.

• The company’s strategic activity over the past three months included 3 M&A deals, 2 investments and 2 other deals.

• Shares of Aptech Ltd. added 101% in 2021 so far compared to S&P BSE IT Index which rose 39.5%.

Shares of Bharti Airtel Ltd. added 6.7%, the most in 15 months, to a record Rs 662 apiece after the company clarified that it does not comment on media speculation regarding a report that hinted that Google was in talks with Airtel to make large investments.

Airtel said that it receives interests from high quality investors and companies for its various business, owing to its significance in telecom and digital industry.

• Trading volume was 42.3 million shares, almost triple the 20-day average of 16.6 million shares for this time of day.

• Bharti Airtel trades at 75 times its estimated earnings per share for the coming year.

• Analysts have 33 'buy', no 'hold' and no 'sell' recommendation on the stock.

Power stocks rose with S&P BSE Power Index adding nearly 1.5%. Shares of Indian Energy Exchange Ltd. advanced nearly 6% while Adani Transmission Ltd. and Adani Power Ltd. added 5%. Only three out of the 14 constituents of the index declined with ABB India Ltd. shedding over 1%

Shares of Indoco Remedies Ltd. extended gains and rose 8.26%, the most in over two weeks, to Rs 504.84 apiece.

On Friday, the company received accreditation from the UK-Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency for its clinical research organization (CRO) – AnaCipher.

The accreditation was received after a virtual inspection carried out in May. On Monday, shares of Indoco Remedies added over 3.6%.

The company’s annual report, released on Monday said that the company received approval for 3 ANDAs over the last financial year and won major tenders in Germany. According to the annual report, the company sees further scope for growth in export market as there is a surge in demand for Indian made pharmaceutical medicines.

Of the 8 analysts tracking the company, 7 maintained ‘buy’ and 1 maintained ‘sell’ recommendations. The overall consensus price of analysts tracked by Bloomberg implied a downside of 0.6%.

Larsen & Toubro Ltd. concluded the divestment of its 100% stake in the hydroelectric power plant at Singoli-Bhatwari in Uttarakhand.

L&T received Rs 1,001.50 crore as divestment proceeds from Renew Power on Monday.

According to an exchange filing by L&T, the deal is in-line with the company’s strategy to pursue the divestment path for all non-core assets in its portfolio. The company also identified its non-core assets in Nabha Power, a 2X700 MW supercritical thermal power plant at Rajpura in Punjab as well as L&T Infrastructure Development Projects Ltd.

Shares of L&T rose 0.85% to Rs 1,674.15 apiece. Of the 43 analysts tracking the company, 41 maintained ‘buy’, 1 maintained ‘hold’ and 1 maintained ‘sell’ recommendations. The overall consensus price of analysts tracked by Bloomberg implied an upside 11.7%.

Shares of RattanIndia Enterprises Ltd. shed nearly 5% to Rs 46.15 apiece.

The company informed the exchanges that it has formed an advisory board of distinguished industry experts and new age entrepreneurs to guide the management on (i) investment strategy, (ii) review of investment proposals, (iii) monitoring performance of Investee companies and subsidiaries.

RattanIndia Enterprises may expand its advisory board further, according to the exchange filing. The company’s strategy strategic activity included 15 M&A deals, 7 investments and 8 other deals over the past 3 months.

India’s benchmark equity index was little changed as it headed towards its biggest monthly advance in nine months.

The S&P BSE Sensex Index added less than 0.1% to 56,931.31 as of 10:07 a.m. in Mumbai, set for an 8.3% monthly advance. The NSE Nifty 50 Index gained 0.1% Tuesday, with both measures set for new records. Tata Consultancy Services Ltd. gave the biggest boost to both gauges, rising 0.8%. Of 30 shares in the Sensex, 19 rose and 11 fell.

“Globally liquidity is one of the important factors which can be attributed to this rally,” Santosh Meena, an analyst at Swastika Investmart Ltd., wrote in a note. “We are in a classical bull run and it may continue for a long time.”

NTPC Ltd. has informed that Unit-2 of the 800 MW capacity of Darlipali Super Thermal Power Station, Stage-I will start commercial operations from Wednesday.

According to an exchange filing by NTPC, the commercial capacity of NTPC and NTPC group will become 53,225 Mega Watt and 66,650 Mega Watt respectively

Shares of AIA Engineering Ltd. climbed 4.36% to Rs 2,048.45 apiece.

Trading volume was 71,678 shares, 14 times the 20-day average of 4,991 shares for this time of day.

AIA Engineering trades at 32 times its estimated earnings per share for the coming year.

Analysts have 11 buy, four hold, and one sell recommendations on the stock. Seven analysts revised their price targets higher while 1 analyst revised it lower over the past month. The stock got one upgrade and downgrade each from analysts over the past month.

The overall consensus price of analysts tracked by Bloomberg implied an upside of 4.5%

Shares of Bharti Airtel Ltd. rose 2.3% to Rs 634.95 apiece after the company’s chairman Sunil Mittal hinted at tariff increase during Bharti Airtel Investor call Monday.

Sunil Mittal At Bharti Airtel Investor Call

• It's time to raise tariff.

• Recent tariff increase has been received very well.

• Happy to take ‘baby steps’ to raise tariffs.

• Expect pick up of Tariff, ARPU in the next few months.

• See 2X net debt-to-EBITDA as comfort level.

• Company to be more comfortable in its debt profile in 2-3 years.

• Have large monetisable assets.

• See ARPU rising to Rs 200 this financial year.

• Have seen the worst in tariff wars, ARPU contraction.

• Expect digital revenue to rise in the coming quarters.

• India should see three private player scenario in telecom sector.

• Bharti Telecom has no plan to sell more shares in Bharti Airtel.

• Do not see significantly higher capex for 5G.

Brokerages on Airtel After the investor call

Dolat Capital

• Maintains ‘buy’ with a price target of Rs 762.

• Bharti is a structural growth story for the next 4-5 years

• Company should see a combination of subscriber growth and 8-10% rise in ARPU over next 2-3 years.

• Company likely to capitalize on alternate revenue streams such as fiber-to-the-home business, enterprise offerings, content, payment, healthcare and education.

Citi

• Maintains ‘buy’ with a price target of Rs 760

• Founder groups well positioned to subscribe to the entire rights entitlement

• Company hopeful of ARPU heading toward the Rs 200 level by end FY22.

• Surprise fund raising mainly for growth capex.

India's stock benchmarks opened higher aided by gains in technology stocks, amid mixed global cues. Investors will look forward to India’s GDP data scheduled to be released later today, to assess the pace of economic recovery.

The S&P BSE Sensex rose 0.36% to a 57,092. The NSE Nifty 50 advanced by similar magnitude to 16,987.45. HDFC Bank Ltd. contributed the most to the index gain, increasing 0.6%. HCL Technologies Ltd. had the largest increase, rising 1.9%.

The broader indices outperformed their larger peers with the S&P BSE MidCap and S&P BSE SmallCap gaining 0.5%. Barring S&P BSE Energy and S&P BSE Capital Goods indices, all the other 17 sectoral indices compiled by the BSE Ltd. advanced, with S&P BSE Telecom adding 1.75%

The market breadth was skewed in favour of bulls. About 1,613 stocks advanced, 731 declined and 102 remained unchanged.

Indian bond traders will look forward to a report that is likely to show economic growth jumped last quarter and an address by central bank Governor Shaktikanta Das to bond traders.

• The economic toll from a deadly second wave of Covid-19 that swept through India last quarter doesn’t appear to be as bad as feared, with analysts still seeing the nation pulling off the world’s fastest growth this year.

• Data due later Tuesday will likely show gross domestic product grew 21% in the three months through June from a year ago, according to the median of 45 estimates compiled by Bloomberg, mainly as a bounce back from last year’s crash.

RBI Governor Das to speak at annual FIMMDA-PDAI conference around 4pm in Mumbai.

USD/INR fell 0.6% to 73.2700 on Monday; Rupee is up 1.5% so far this month, among the best EM Asian FX performers.

10-year yields fell 3bps to 6.23% on Monday.

• Global funds bought net Rs 1,203 crore stocks Monday: NSE

• Global funds sold Rs 10 crore of sovereign bonds under limits available to foreign investors, and added Rs 105 crore of corporate debt.

• State-run banks sold Rs 1,020 crore of sovereign bonds on August 30: CCIL data. Foreign banks bought Rs 670 crore of bonds.

Most Asian stocks dipped on Tuesday as traders assessed weaker economic activity in China and the latest escalation in Beijing’s crackdown on private industries.

Equities slipped in Japan and Hong Kong and were steady in China, where the latest purchasing managers’ indexes showed the economy took a knock amid an outbreak of the delta virus variant. U.S. contracts fluctuated after the S&P 500 hit a record and the Nasdaq 100 climbed.

Stepped up curbs on Chinese video-gaming firms also hampered sentiment by putting the spotlight back on the clampdown on technology companies. Separately, China’s securities regulator said it plans to rein in the country’s private equity and venture capital funds.

India’s SGX Nifty 50 Index futures for September delivery fell 0.2% to 16,925.50, while MSCI Asia Pacific Index shed 0.6%. The NSE Nifty 50 gained 1.4% on Monday to 16,931.05.

Treasuries are holding onto gains made following Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell’s measured comments about a possible reduction in stimulus. The dollar was little changed.

Global stocks are set for a seventh monthly advance on robust company profits, expanding vaccinations to underpin economic reopening and supportive Fed policies. At the same time, depressed Treasury yields may reflect fears of a slower recovery ahead because of risks such as the delta strain.

Elsewhere, oil headed for the biggest monthly loss since October. Traders are weighing the prospect of additional OPEC+ production and the restoration of crude output in the U.S. after Hurricane Ida. In cryptocurrencies, Bitcoin fell below $47,000.

Back home, India will release GDP data for quarter ended June, fiscal deficit data for April-July and eight core industries data for July. Bharti Airtel, IndiGo, Sun Pharma, Apollo Hospitals are among the companies holding their annual shareholders’ meeting. Foreign investors sold net Rs 617 crore of stocks on Aug. 27, according to NSDL website.