Sensex, Nifty Close At Record Highs For Third Day Led By RIL, Tata Steel

India’s stock benchmarks closed at record for the third consecutive trading session aided by gains in Tata Steel Ltd. and index heavyweight Reliance Industries Ltd. There was relief on the macro-economy front as wholesale inflation eased for the second straight month in July.

The S&P BSE Sensex gained 0.26% to 55,582.58, a record close for the 30-stock index which hit a new high of 55,680.75 in intraday trade. The NSE Nifty 50 advanced by a similar magnitude to close at a record 16,563.05. The 50-stock index had hit a high of 16,589.40 in intraday trade.

Index heavyweight Reliance Industries provided the biggest boost to both indexes, rising as much as 2.67% in intraday trade following a Bloomberg report that said that Saudi Aramco is in advanced talks for an all-stock deal to acquire a stake in the Indian company’s oil refining and chemicals business. Tata Steel gained the most, advancing nearly 4%.

The broader indices underperformed larger peers with S&P BSE MidCap shedding 0.18% and S&P BSE SmallCap slipping 0.6%. Thirteen out of the 19 sectoral indices compiled by the BSE Ltd. declined, with S&P BSE Telecom falling 1%. On the flip side, S&P BSE Metal gained nearly 2%.

The market breadth was skewed in favour of bears. About 1,168 stocks advanced, 2,124 declined and 139 remained unchanged.

"Despite weak global market conditions, Indian markets maintained the bullish momentum amid sharp intraday volatility. On daily charts, benchmark index Nifty has formed a breakout continuation formation. The texture of the chart suggests the 16,450-16,400 level would act as a key support level for the day traders. As long as the index is trading above the same, the uptrend texture is likely to continue up to 16,600-16,640 levels. In the near future, the market may consolidate near 16,600 resistance level", Shrikant Chouhan, Executive Vice President, Equity Technical Research, Kotak Securities Ltd. wrote in a note.

Cadila Healthcare Ltd. shed the most in more than five months after a media report said India’s drug regulator wanted more trials of a two-dose regime of its Covid-19 vaccine called ZyCov-D.

Shares fell as much as 6.17% to Rs 524 apiece, trading volume 46% greater than 3-month, full-day average.

A panel of India's drug regulator met Saturday to consider Cadila's application for emergency use of double-dose and triple-dose regimes of its vaccine and concluded stage III trials were needed, according to a media report.

Housing Development Finance Corporation Ltd. has launched “Green & Sustainable Deposits” to safeguard the environment from climate change. These fixed deposits will be directed towards financing of Green and sustainable housing credit solutions and services, according to a statement from the company.

Key Features

• Eligibility: Individuals (Residents & NRIs)

• Period of Deposits: 36-120 months.

• Interest Rates: Up to 6.55% per annum. Senior citizens will be eligible for an additional 0.25% per annum on deposits up to Rs 2 crore.

Shares of Triveni Turbine Ltd advanced 12.94%, the steepest rise in intraday trade in nearly six months, to Rs 133.50 apiece, after the company reported sequential growth in net income and revenue in the June quarter, post market hours Friday.

First Quarter Results (Consolidated)

• Net income at Rs 27.75 crore vs Rs 23.28 crore QoQ

• Revenue at Rs 184.06 crore vs Rs 178.53 crore QoQ

• Total costs at Rs 153.49 crore vs Rs 159.15 crore QoQ

• Other income at Rs 5.55 crore vs Rs 4.24 crore QoQ

All the six analysts tracking the company maintained ‘buy’ recommendations with the consensus price implying an upside of 11.9%

Shares of Shriram City Union Finance Ltd. fell nearly 8%, the steepest intraday decline since December 22, 2020, to Rs 1,991.00 apiece.

The company informed it intimated the stock exchanges the information/events as required under Regulation 30 of the SEBI (LODR) Regulations, 2015 and clarified it did not have any information/announcement that may have a bearing on the price/volume behavior of the scrip, according to exchange filing by Shriram City Union. The reply comes after BSE Ltd. sought a clarification from the company for the movement in price.

Of the 16 analysts tracking the company, 14 maintained ‘buy’ and 2 maintained ‘sell’ recommendations, with two analyst downgrades in the last 30 days. The overall consensus price of analysts tracked by Bloomberg implied an upside of 8%. Shares of Shriram City Union Finance added 91% in 2021 so far.

Shares of Vodafone Idea Ltd. shed over 7% to Rs 5.85 apiece after the company reported net loss wider than the average analyst analyst in the June quarter, post market hours on Friday.

First Quarter Results (Consolidated)

• Net loss at Rs 7,319.1 crore vs estimate of Rs 6,614.6 crore (Bloomberg Consensus)

• Revenues at Rs 9,152.3 crore vs estimate of Rs 9,592.1 crore

• Ebitda at Rs 3,707.7 crore vs estimate of Rs 4,286.5 crore

• Margin at 40.5% vs estimate of 44.7%

• Average revenue per user at Rs 104 vs Rs 107 QoQ

Of the 23 analysts tracking the company, 1 maintained ‘buy’, 6 maintained ‘hold’ and 16 analysts maintained ‘sell’ recommendations. The overall price consensus of analysts tracked by Bloomberg implied an upside of 10.2%. The Relative Strength Index is 29, suggesting that the stock may be oversold. Shares of Vodafone Idea declined nearly 44% in 2021 compared to 21.37% gains for S&P BSE Telecom index.

India’s stock benchmarks posted record for the third consecutive trading, aided by gains in index heavyweight Reliance Industries Ltd.

The S&P BSE Sensex gained 0.21% to 55,553.97. The 30-stock index had hit a record 55,680.75 in intraday trade. The NSE Nifty 50 gained 0.12% to 16,549.20. Nifty had also hit a record 16,585.45 in intraday trade.

Reliance Industries provided the biggest boost to both indexes, rising as much as 2.6% following a Bloomberg report that said that Saudi Aramco is in advanced talks for an all-stock deal to acquire a stake in the Indian company’s oil refining and chemicals business. Besides RIL, Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd and Tata Steel Ltd also gained over 2%.

The broader indices underperformed larger peers with S&P BSE MidCap shedding 0.25% and S&P BSE SmallCap slipping over 0.6%. Fourteen out of the 17 sectoral indices compiled by the BSE Ltd. declined, with S&P BSE Telecom falling 1% and S&P BSE Power shedding 0.8%.

The market breadth was skewed in favour of bears. About 1,122 stocks advanced, 2,042 declined and 130 remained unchanged.

Shares of Apex Frozen Foods Ltd. shed 20% to Rs 263.40 after reporting a sequential decline in net income in June quarter, on Friday.

First Quarter Results (Standalone)

• Net income at Rs 3.29 crore vs Rs 8.37 crore QoQ

• Revenue at Rs 222.82 crore vs Rs 181.91 crore QoQ

• Total costs at Rs 222.80 crore vs Rs 172.27 crore QoQ

• Other income at Rs 4.69 crore vs Rs 2.23 crore QoQ

The Relative Strength Index was 24, suggesting that the stock may be oversold. The stock price crossed below 200-day moving average on high trading volume (6.3 times of the 30 day average at this time of the day). Shares of Apex Frozen Foods have shed over 10% in 2021 so far.

Tejas Networks and KEC International declined after the Taliban took control of most of Afghanistan, raising doubts over the two Indian companies’ projects in the country.

• Shares of Tejas Networks declined by daily 5% limit, their biggest single-day slump since August 11

• Tejas has signed a multi-year contract with Asia Consultancy Group for supply of network gear that will be used for setting up a high-capacity national backbone and packet access network in Afghanistan, according to an exchange filing January 27.

• Shares of KEC International declined as much as 2.29%; heading for lowest since August 12.

• The power transmission and distribution company is implementing a project in Afghanistan, according to its annual report for the year ended March.

  • “We have the largest Indian presence in Afghanistan building the country’s power infrastructure. It is heartbreaking to see the scenes of pain, terror and despondency,” Harsh Goenka, chairman of KEC International, said in a Twitter post on Aug. 13

  • Afghanistan government has planned construction of nearly 1,500 kilometers of transmission lines and 34 substations between fiscal year 2020-2025, KEC said in its annual report last month.

  • “However, the business forecast and forthcoming projects have a high degree of sensitivity to the volatile security situation of the country,” the report added.

• Kalpataru Power Transmission, which is also implementing contract work in Afghanistan, traded 1.5% lower in Mumbai

HDFC Bank has approved the issuance of US$ Basel III Compliant Additional Tier-1 Bonds in international markets to raise long term funds.

HDFC Bank has prepared an offering memorandum and it will be made available to the prospective investors in relation to the contemplated issue of notes. The notes will not be offered or sold in India, an exchange filing by the bank showed.

Shares of Indraprastha Gas Ltd. gained 3.37% to Rs 553.20 apiece after the company reported its June quarter earnings post market hours Friday

First Quarter Results (Consolidated, QoQ)

• Revenue at Rs 1,380.49 crore vs Rs 1,710.32 crore

• Net profit at Rs 277.95 crore vs Rs 375.10 crore

• Ebitda at Rs 380.86 crore vs Rs 491.76 crore

• Margin at 27.6% vs 28.8%

Here’s what brokerages have said about Indraprastha Gas’ June quarter results.

Prabhudas Lilladher

• Maintains buy with the target price unchanged at Rs 662, an implied return of 23.70%.

• Pandemic restrictions impacted volumes. However easing of restrictions will limit incidence of lockdown, going ahead.

• Business model remains enviable with high volume growth, due to geographical expansion and addition of new buses and taxis.

• Fuel economics, shift to private vehicle ownership post pandemic likely to drive CNG volumes.

• Sees very limited threated to Indraprastha Gas’ growth prospects.

Jefferies

• Maintains ‘buy’ with the target price raised to Rs 690, an implied return of 28.94%.

• Recovery is on track with volumes crossing pre-covid levels in July.

• Expect IGL to maintain the new higher normal of Rs 8/scm Ebitda margin despite the possible rise in gas costs and dealer commission.

• 20% growth on existing CNG station base (612 stations) bodes well for the volume growth prospects in the near term.

Of the 36 analysts tracking the company, 28 maintained ‘buy’, 3 maintained ‘hold’ and 5 maintained ‘sell’ recommendations with 9 analysts revising the price targets higher over the last month. The overall consensus price of analysts tracked by Bloomberg implied an upside of 9.7%.

Nifty Pharma shed over 0.75% to 13,919.05 with all the constituents trading with losses.

Cadila Healthcare stock shed nearly 5%. Trading volume was 2.28 million shares, triple the 20-day average of 0.82 million shares for this time of the day. The relative strength index on the stock was below 30, indicating that it may be oversold. Shares of Aurobindo Pharma and Lupin fell over 1.5% as well.

Shares Devyani International Ltd. got listed at Rs 141 apiece on the NSE, a premium of 56.7% to its IPO price of Rs 90 while Krsnaa Diagnostics’ shares listed at 5.4% premium on market debut.

Shares of Exxaro Tiles Ltd. debuted at 5% premium over IPO price while Windlas Biotech Ltd. stock got listed at a 4.6% discount to its issue price on market debut

For more on the listings

• Devyani International: Market Debut

• Krsnaa Diagnostics: Market Debut

• Exxaro Tiles: Market Debut

• Windlas Biotech: Market Debut

Shares of Fortis Healthcare Ltd. added nearly 5.5% to Rs 249.40 apiece. Trading volume was 1.88 million shares, quadruple the 20-day average of 0.46 million shares for this time of the day.

Fortis Healthcare reported a sequential growth in net income in June quarter, post market hours Friday.

June Quarter Numbers (Consolidated)

• Net profit at Rs 430.61 crore vs Rs 62.38 crore QoQ

• Revenue at Rs 1,410.31 crore vs Rs 1,252.44 crore QoQ

• Total costs at Rs 1,246.40 crore vs Rs 1,167.29 crore QoQ

• Other income at Rs 7.84 crore vs Rs 6.34 crore QoQ

Of the 11 analysts tracking the company, 8 maintained 'buy' and 3 maintained 'hold' recommendations. The overall consensus price of analysts tracked by Bloomberg implied an upside of 1.4%.

Shares of SpiceJet Ltd. declined over 16% to Rs 60 apiece after the company reported a net loss in the first quarter post market hours Friday.

SpiceJet Q1FY22 (Consolidated, QoQ)

• Net loss at Rs 731.11 crore Vs Rs 256.97 crore

• Revenue at Rs 1,125 crore Vs Rs 1,888.19 crore

• Ebitda loss at Rs 414.91 crore Vs Rs 77.25 crore

Of the 9 analysts tracking the company, 1 maintained ‘buy’, 4 maintained ‘hold’ and 4 maintained ‘sell’ recommendations. The overall consensus price of analysts tracked by Bloomberg implied an upside of 13.9%. Shares of SpiceJet declined over 26% in 2021 so far compared to 17.1% gains for the S&P BSE Sensex.

India’s stock benchmarks were almost unchanged after closing at record high last week as investors assess weak global cues.

The S&P BSE Sensex gained 0.05% to 55,463.73. The NSE Nifty 50 remained almost unchanged at 16,538.15.

The broader indices almost mirrored their larger peers with S&P BSE MidCap and S&P BSE SmallCap almost unchanged.. Ten out of the 17 sectoral indices compiled by the BSE Ltd. declined, with S&P BSE Power and S&P BSE Consumer Durables shedding over 0.5%.

The market breadth was neither skewed in favour of bulls nor bears. About 1,203 stocks advanced, 1,260 declined and 104 remained unchanged.

“Domestic equities do not look to be inspiring as of now,” Binod Modi, head of strategy at Mumbai-based Reliance Securities Ltd. wrote in a note. “While the benchmark Nifty and Sensex witnessed strong rebounds last week, it was not a broad-based rally.”

Of the 50 Nifty companies, 29 missed quarterly earnings estimates, 19 exceeded, while two reported results in line with expectations.

Devyani International Ltd. has entered into a revised development pack for its existing business, gaining development rights for pan India in a phased manner.

The pact initially allows development rights for a period of 5 years and can be extended from time to time.

Devyani shares are set to make their trading debut today after the IPO was subscribed nearly 117 times.

Shares of India’s infrastructure companies may move after Prime Minister Narendra Modi said the country will launch a Rs 100 trillion ($1.35 trillion) national infrastructure plan that will help generate employment and boost economic growth. The investments will be made in India’s logistics sector to help integrate the country’s varied modes of transport, Modi said in his national address on the country’s 75th Independence Day on Sunday.

India’s energy companies and firms providing infrastructure to the sector will also be in focus after the government announced an ambitious plan to make the country a global hub for green hydrogen. India needs to emerge as a global hub for production and export of green hydrogen over the next 25 years, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said in his address to the nation.

U.S. equity futures and most Asian stocks slipped on Monday as the delta virus strain hampers economic reopening and as traders await key Chinese data that may signal slower growth.

Shares fell in Japan on escalating Covid-19 infections and a stronger yen. Equities in China and Hong Kong fluctuated. S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 contracts retreated after a drop in U.S. consumer sentiment to a near-decade low injected some caution, depressing Treasury yields and the dollar.

China’s retail sales and industrial output numbers may show growth slowed in July following flooding and mobility curbs to fight a virus outbreak. Speculation is growing that officials could further ease monetary policy. Beijing’s regulatory crackdown on private industries is also unnerving markets.

India’s SGX Nifty 50 Index futures for August delivery fell 0.3% to 16,478.50, while MSCI Asia Pacific Index declined 0.8%. The Nifty 50 had gained 1% on Friday to 16,529.10.

Investors are tracking alarm in Congress as the Taliban take control of Afghanistan in the vacuum left by departing U.S. and NATO forces. President Joe Biden’s economic agenda is already facing lawmaker obstacles, after some House Democrats threatened to withhold support from a $3.5 trillion budget blueprint until a bipartisan infrastructure package is signed into law.

Equities in the U.S. and Europe pushed on to all-time highs last week, bolstered by vaccine rollouts. But the fast-spreading delta variant and inflationary pressures remain risks. There are fears the world may struggle to achieve herd immunity, where the pathogen stops spreading rapidly because enough people are shielded against it. Covid-19 cases were at or near records in Thailand, Vietnam and the Philippines.

Elsewhere, Bitcoin was trading around $47,500 and the total market value of cryptocurrencies was back above $2 trillion. Crude oil slipped.

Back home, ONGC, Vodafone Idea, Petronet LNG, SpiceJet, IGL, Apollo Hospitals, Sun TV, Glenmark Pharma, Ruchi Soya, Poonawalla Fincorp, J&K Bank, NBCC, JK Cement may react as the companies reported quarterly results after the market closed on Friday. Apollo Hospitals, Saregama India are holding their annual shareholders’ meeting. Foreign investors bought net Rs. 290 crore of stocks on Aug. 12, according to NSDL website.