MARKET WRAP: Sensex gains 173 pts as auto, IT, and metal stocks advance

All that happened in the markets today

3:42 PM

Sensex gainers and losers at close

3:41 PM

SENSEX AT CLOSE

3:40 PM

SECTOR WATCH:: Auto, metal stocks rally

3:39 PM

CLOSING BELL

Sensex ends 173 points, or 0.46 per cent, higher at 38,051, and the Nifty50 index settles 81 points, or 0.72 per cent, higher at 11,259

3:34 PM

Indian economy likely to contract by 16.5% in Q1FY21: SBI report

"In May, we had indicated that the Q1FY21 GDP growth will exhibit a sharp decline at least in excess of 30 per cent. However, the current situation warrant us to revisit our GDP growth... In principle, revenue decline of listed companies has been far outstripped by cost rationalisation thereby not impacting margins. As per our estimates, Q1FY21 real GDP degrowth would be now around –16.5 per cent," Soumya Kanti Ghosh, chief economic advisor for SBI wrote in his latest report Ecowrap, dated August 17. The government is expected to release Q1FY21 GDP data on August 31. READ MORE

3:24 PM

AGR hearing | SC had indicated that entity using the spectrum must discharge the AGR dues:Solicitor General to SC

-- Sharing of spectrum different from Spectrum trading: Solicitor General

3:18 PM

BUZZING STOCK:: Thyrocare Tech zooms 18%

3:15 PM

Stocks that hit 52-week high on BSE today

COMPANY	PRICE(rs)	52 WK HIGH	CHG(%)
ADVANCED ENZYME	238.90	244.20	10.22
ALKYL AMINES	2862.95	2950.00	1.17
APL APOLLO TUBES	2283.15	2319.40	4.32
BAJAJ ELECTRICAL	485.55	491.15	3.76
JINDAL STAIN.	47.05	48.00	4.79

3:03 PM

Bharti Airtel, Vodafone Idea trade lower ahead of SC's AGR hearing

COMPANY	LATEST(rs)	CHG(%)
VODAFONE IDEA	8.92	-0.11
BHARTI AIRTEL	520.55	-1.58
TATA COMM	829.45	1.61

2:55 PM

Broader markets race ahead in August, even as large-caps show fatigue

To underscore the buying frenzy in the broader markets, nearly 300 stocks have gained more than 25 per cent this month, and more than 40 of them have gained over 50 per cent each. Most of these stocks belong to the small-cap universe, where foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) or large mutual funds (MFs) abstain from investing because of sparse liquidity. As a result, experts said gains in the small-cap universe could be fuelled by retail investors, who are not particularly known to place well-researched bets. READ MORE 

2:50 PM

Pending AGR verdict has been an overhang on telecom stocks. Should you exit?

BSE Telecom Index: The index appears to be in a consolidation mode between 1,370 and 1,235 levels. The current momentum shows that the index will face resistance at its 50-day moving average (DMA) placed at 1,298. From an immediate viewpoint, the index needs to give a strong close above 50-DMA. Though the overall trend looks stable, a breakout from this consolidation phase will define the next course. READ MORE

2:41 PM

Nifty Metal index in focus, up 2%

2:29 PM

NEWS ALERT :: Britannia declares interim dividend of Rs 83/share for FY21

>>  The record date for the purpose of determining the entitlement of the shareholders for the purpose of payment of Interim Dividend has been fixed as Thursday, 27th August, 2020 and the Interim Dividend is proposed to be paid to the shareholders, subject to deduction/withholding of applicable taxes, within the time prescribed under law.

>>  The Company at their meeting held today have approved the enhancement of limit for Issuance of Commercial Paper, from time to time, from Rs. 800 Crores to Rs. 1,279 Crores. 

(Source: BSE filing)

2:21 PM

BROKERAGE VIEW:: Edelweiss Securities on Emami

As things normalise, we expect revenue growth to improve as the rural business recovers, wholesale dependence recedes and product relaunches gain desired traction. Furthermore, alleviation of promoter-level pledging concern and launches in the health & hygiene space are added positives. We maintain ‘BUY/SO’ with TP of Rs 380. The stock is trading at a PE of 28.4x FY22E.

2:10 PM

Rupee Closing

Rupee ends at 74.89 per US dollar vs Friday's close of 74.90/$

2:08 PM

AGR Case Update :: Jio claims there is no legal basis for transferring AGR dues of Rel Comm to Jio

>> Says, there is no legal basis to make one network operator liable for use of other's spectrum

>> Travesty if competitors are made laible for dues of each other

>> Says, spectrum sharing guidelines of 2015 designed to enable operators for utilising excess capacity w.r.t spectrum, guideline don't provide for spectrum leasing

Alert: SC, in Aug 14, hearing had asked Jio to pay for Rel Comm's AGR dues if it was using its spectrum.

          SC to hear AGR case at 3 pm today

(As reported by CNBC TV18)

2:06 PM

Bengaluru 26th fastest-growing residential market globally in Q2: Report

Knight Frank's Prime Global Cities index, an unweighted average of the change in prices across 45 cities, hit its lowest rate of annual growth since October – December 2009 quarter (Q4-2009) when the world was in the grip of the global financial crisis (GFC). It expects the index to display muted growth in the second half of 2020 before recovering in 2021. The global real estate consultant defines prime residential property as the most desirable and most expensive property in a given location, generally defined as the top 5 per cent of each market by value. READ MORE 

1:57 PM

BUZZING STOCK:: NTPC jumps 9%

1:51 PM

BROKERAGE VIEW:: Anand Rathi Shares on Aaarti Industries

Muted demand from user industries and lockdown-hit lower utilisation, mainly in its specialty chemicals division, hurt Aarti’s Q1. Revenue/ EBITDA/PAT fell 17.5%/27.2%/40.7% y/y. We are upbeat on its long-term performance as it is working on new chemistries, expected to start from FY23; also due to product launches and revenue from many-year deals. Further, its plans to capitalise ~Rs 24bn capex in the next 18-24 months on different projects offers long-term revenue assurance. We expect revenue/PAT to clock 15%/12% CAGRs over FY20-22. We maintain our Buy and target at 31.2x FY22e.

1:49 PM

NEWS ALERT :: Suven Pharma approves 1:1 bonus share issue

>> The bonus issue of equity shares is subject to the approval of the shareholders in the ensuing annual general meeting and any other applicable statutory and regulatory approvals, as may be required.

Source: BSE filing

1:40 PM

PI Industries slips over 2% as CFO Subhash Anand steps down

"We wish to inform the exchange that Subhash Anand, Chief Financial Officer of the Company has decided to step down due to personal reasons and has requested for early relieving. The management has accepted his request and accordingly he shall be relieved from his current responsibilities w.e.f. closing hours of August 18, 2020," it said in an exchange filing.  READ MORE

1:32 PM

Tea stocks rally as prices surge amid supply disruption; should you buy?

“Prices of tea in auctions have gone up significantly this year due to a shortage of supply. But we are not being able to pass on the price to our customers because the economic situation in the country is not conducive for increasing prices. The pandemic has created economic uncertainty everywhere,” says Viren Shah, chairman of Federation of All India Tea Traders Association (FAITTA). READ MORE

1:22 PM

Berger Paints falls 4% as Q1 net profit slips 91% YoY; what brokerages say

"We believe Berger Paints would have had a larger stock of higher-priced crude inventory, due to which gross profit margin (GPM) was more impacted as compared to peers. Kansai Nerolac started consuming low-priced crude inventory from June. Nonetheless, we expect all players to witness benefits of low-priced crude inventory from 2QFY21, which should cushion margin contraction," said global brokerage firm Nomura in a result review note. READ MORE

1:11 PM

Aarti Drugs shares surge 13% on bonus issue plan announcement

Shares of Aarti Drugs surged as much as 13.48 per cent to Rs 2,398.40 on the BSE on Monday after the company announced that its board will meet on August 20 to consider bonus issue proposal. "This is to inform you that next Board Meeting of the Board of Directors of the Company is scheduled to be held on Thursday, August 20, 2020 to consider a proposal for issue of Bonus Shares," the company said in a filing to exchanges today. READ MORE

12:56 PM

FPIs turn net investor in debt after 5 months; invest Rs 28,203 cr in Aug

Also, FPIs turned net investors in the debt segment in August after a gap of five months.

 

Market experts attributed the inflows to better-than-expected corporate earnings and increasing global liquidity. READ MORE

12:45 PM

The market won't wait for earnings to recover, says Jitendra Gohil

After a sharp rally since March lows, Jitendra Gohil, head of India equity research, Credit Suisse Wealth Management, tells Puneet Wadhwa his house remains neutral on equities as an asset class, but believes they may remain well supported as global bond market yields are unattractive. READ MORE

Jitendra Gohil Head of India equity research, Credit Suisse Wealth Management

12:31 PM

MARKET CHECK:: Top 5 losers on the BSE at this hour

12:05 PM

IT stocks gain; Mindtree, Wipro advance nearly 3%, Tech Mahindra up 2%

At 11:17 AM, the Nifty IT index was trading 0.85 per cent higher at 18,175.80 levels. Among individual stocks, Mindtree was ruling nearly 3 per cent higher at Rs 1,166.75 and was the top gainer on the Nifty IT index. Wipro, NIIT Tech, and Tech Mahindra were up over 2 per cent each. Meanwhile, Infosys was up 0.7 per cent and HCL Technologies was up 0.5 per cent. On the flip side, Larsen & Toubro Infotech (LTI), and Mphasis were trading in the red. In comparison, the benchmark Nifty50 index was trading at 11,199, up 0.19 per cent. READ MORE 

11:42 AM

Top gainers on BSE at this hour

COMPANY	PRICE(rs)	CHG(%)
THYROCARE TECH.	786.65	11.68
HFCL	16.60	7.79
STERLITE TECH.	139.70	7.26
SHRI.CITY UNION.	843.30	7.11
QUESS CORP	390.00	6.72

11:17 AM

Sun TV zooms 10% post June quarter earnings; Nomura maintains 'Buy'

Shares of Sun TV surged 10 per cent to Rs 440.20 on the BSE after the company shared a healthy subscription outlook going forward and said that revenues were already close to 75 per cent of the pre-Covid levels. Meanwhile, the company reported consolidated profit after tax (PAT) of Rs 257.41 crore for the quarter ending June 30, 2020 (Q1FY21) as compared to Rs 386.61 crore reported in the corresponding quarter last year. READ MORE