Sensex ends 145 pts down, Nifty at 10,501; PNB crashes over 10%

All that happened in markets today.

3:40 PM

Top Sectoral losers: Nifty PSU Banks cracks nearly 5%

3:37 PM

Sectoral Trend

3:34 PM

Sensex losers and gainers

3:33 PM

Market at close

The benchmark indices ended in negative on Wednesday, taking cues from its key Asian peers. Shares of Punjab National Bank crashed 10% after the bank reported some 'fraudulent and unauthorised' transactions worth about $1.77 billion at one of its branches in Mumbai.

The S&P BSE Sensex ended at 34,156, down 145 points while the broader Nifty50 index settled at 10,501, down 39 points.

3:18 PM

NCC surges 9% on strong Q3 results

 

NCC has rallied 9% to Rs 130 on BSE after the company reported 72% year on year (Y-o-Y) growth in net profit at Rs 1,004 million in December quarter (Q3FY18), on back of healthy operational performance. The construction & engineering company had profit of Rs 583 million during the same quarter last fiscal.

 

However, the operational revenue during the quarter declined 2.7% to Rs 18,507 million from Rs 19,037 million in the corresponding quarter of previous fiscal. READ MORE

3:10 PM

Idea Cellular board approves equity issue of up to Rs 35-bn through QIP

 

Telecom major Idea Cellular today said its Board has accorded final approval for issuing equity shares for up to Rs 3,500 crore through Qualified Institution Placement (QIP) route.

 

"The Board of Directors at its meeting today has accorded final approval for issuance of equity shares for an amount not exceeding Rs 3,500 crore by way of QIP to the eligible investors...," Idea Cellular said in a BSE filing. READ MORE

3:00 PM

Market Check

S&P BSE Sensex	34,246.33		-0.16%
Nifty 50	10,540.65		0.01%
S&P BSE 200	4,624.65		-0.02%
Nifty 500	9,346.25		-0.02%
S&P BSE Mid-Cap	16,918.82		0.39%
S&P BSE Small-Cap	18,531.96		0.37%

2:45 PM

Mittal steers clear of trouble, sells stake in KSS ahead of Essar Steel bid

ArcelorMittal Chairman L N Mittal has sold his 33% personal holding in KazStroyService (KSS), an oil infrastructure provider company based in Kazakhstan, in an effort to put to rest questions on his eligibility to bid for stressed assets. KSS owns 100% in KSS Petron, which became a non-performing asset (NPA) in 2015. READ MORE

2:32 PM

Sectoral watch: Insurance

Merger of three PSU general insurers likely before next fiscal-end

The merger of the three public sector general insurance companies -- National Insurance Company (NIC), United India Insurance and Oriental Insurance Company -- is likely to be completed before the end of the next financial year.

 

The chiefs of the three companies will have their first meeting with the government on this issue on the 16th of this month. READ MORE

2:17 PM

News: Coal India target for power sector pegged at 513 mn tonnes for next fiscal

Coal India will supply 513 million tonnes of coal and offer 12 million tonnes more via e-auction to the power sector in 2018-19 (FY19). The remaining 90 million tonnes of the sector’s demand will come from Singareni Collieries and captive coal blocks, Coal India executives said.
 

After facing a deficit in the last quarter, the power ministry has asked Coal India and Indian Railways to ensure a supply of 615 million tonnes annually, with 288 rakes moving every day. The deficit, according to the ministry, had led to a shortage of power generation. READ MORE

2:10 PM

Investing strategy: For regular income, systematic withdrawal plan is more tax-efficient option

From April 1, mutual fund investors who had chosen the dividend option in equity funds will have to pay a flat 10 per cent tax on the payouts they receive. Those who don't need the money should immediately shift to the growth option and redeem only when there is a need. Those who chose the dividend option because they needed a regular income should shift to a systematic withdrawal plan (SWP), which is a more tax-efficient option. READ MORE

1:59 PM

Sectoral Trend

1:52 PM

Must Read: Ugly face of capitalism

It speaks volumes for the reputation of Malvinder and Shivinder Singh, promoters of Fortis Healthcare and Religare Enterprises, that shares of both the companies soared following news that the brothers had stepped down from the board of the former.

 

The two, respectively chairman and executive vice-chairman of Fortis, had opted to step down following a high court ruling upholding a $550-million award by a Singapore arbitration tribunal to Japanese drug maker Daiichi Sankyo against the brothers for concealing facts when they sold group company Ranbaxy in 2007. READ MORE

1:33 PM

Scam worth Rs 110 bn: PNB detects fraud transactions; stock price drops 7%

 

In what may turn out to be one of the biggest scams in Indian corporate history, Punjab National Bank has detected fraudulent transactions worth around Rs 110 billion from one of its Mumbai branch allegedly by diamond merchant Nirav Modi, his relatives and business partner Mehul Choksi during this year.

 

PNB share prices fell around 7% in the early trade on Wednesday morning after the bank reported fraudulent transactions worth $1.77 billion to Bombay Stock Exchange. READ MORE

1:31 PM

Index watch

S&P BSE Sensex	34,327.02		0.08%
Nifty 50	10,555.30		0.15%
S&P BSE 200	4,638.24		0.28%
Nifty 500	9,373.55		0.27%
S&P BSE Mid-Cap	16,977.50		0.74%
S&P BSE Small-Cap	18,610.26		0.80%

1:27 PM

IPO watch: Aster DM

Aster DM Ltd has shown consistent sales growth of 38% during FY12-17 with EBITDA growth of 16% as the company doubled its number of clinics in past two years. This has resulted in increased expenditure base. Further due to one-time write-off take in Saudi Arabia, the company reported loss at PAT level in FY17. However, we believe these are one-time incidents. We expect Aster DM to be back to double digit EBITDA margins soon. 

 

Going forward, as the company is coming out of its investment phase, we expect Aster to report higher growth in profitability and improvement in margins as well as return ratios. At higher band the issue is offered at 19.6x FY18E calculated EV/EBITDA. We like the company’s strong brand equity and consistent track record. We recommend investors to subscribe the issue for long term gains.

 

(Source: Nirmal Bang)

1:15 PM

ACE, Mastek, Nitco,Precision Wires from BSE Smallcap index hit 52-week high

 

Action Construction Equipment (ACE), Precision Wires India, Mastek, Pancea Biotech and Nitco were among 10 stocks from the BSE Smallcap index hitting their respective 52-week highs in otherwise subdued market after reported a good set of numbers for the quarter ended December 2017 (Q3FY18).

 

Firstsource Solutions, J Kumar Infrastructure, Lumax Auto Technologies, Shriram EPC and Zydus Wellness too touched 52-week high on BSE in intra-day trade. READ MORE

12:56 PM

HDFC Securities on Mahanagar Gas

 

The  company  has  started  work  on  building  an infrastructure in Raigad district,  and  is  expanding  in  the authorised areas close to Thane city (Ambernath, Kalyan, Dombivali, Ulhasnagar). We expect an overall volume growth of 4-5%  over  FY18E-20E. There will be pressure on margins as in near term as company  is  expanding  its  network into area where volumes growth will be predominately driven by price sensitive industrial customers. Our target is Rs 1,240/share (27x FY20E standalone EPS)

12:54 PM

GlaxoSmithKline Consumer Healthcare

Rating: Accumulate

Target Price: Rs 6,797

 

GSK under the new MD (Navneet Saluja) has given cautiously optimistic outlook in demand led by 1) high double digit growth in base Horlicks sachet priced at Rs.5 2) focus on increasing share in high growth protein segment led by Horlicks Growth Plus, Protein and Cardia Plus 3) brand extension of Horlicks in other food products. 

 

While GSK has right to win in MFD and high protein categories, we remain sceptical of GSK's renewed effort in foods space given that it has failed to make a dent in categories like Energy Bars, Biscuits and Instant Noodles etc. in the past. 

 

We estimate 5% volume CAGR over FY17-20 as against 0.5% decline in FY16 and ~6% decline in FY17. GSK trades at 30.8xDec19 EPS which is at 15% discount our coverage universe. We value the stock at 35xDec19 and arrive at a target price of Rs.6797. Retain "Accumulate"

 

(Source: Prabhudas Lilladher)

12:53 PM

Motilal Oswal Research on Sun TV

 

With growth revival in the next two - three years driving standalone EPS CAGR of 24%, RoE of 33%, and steady FCF generation, the stock should continue to offer healthy upside. We value SUNTV at 30x December 2019E EPS (~15% discount to ZEEL), arriving at a target price of Rs 1,225. SUNTV currently trades at ~19% discount to ZEEL. Despite being a regional player, this valuation gap should reduce, as SUNTV is likely to grow at a steady pace.

12:51 PM

Nirmal Bang on Bata India (BIL)

 

Taking into consideration the 9MFY18 performance, we have slightly reduced our revenue estimates, but increased our margin estimates as BIL is making conscious efforts to optimise its costs and premiumise its revenues. 

 

Following continuous rise in new product varieties, premiumisation, increased advertisement spending and decent SSG, we expect BIL to clock revenues/EBITDA/PAT CAGR of ~11%/21%/23%, respectively, over FY17-FY20E. We have rolled forward our estimates to FY20 and this has resulted in a change in our rating on BIL from Accumulate to Buy with a March 2019 target price of Rs821 (from Rs755 earlier). We continue to value BIL’s business at 32x FY20E earnings

12:50 PM

RBI's measures are good; be selective in buying PSU banks, say analysts

 

Banking stocks came under selling pressure on Wednesday after the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) unveiled new norms for dealing with non-performing assets (NPAs) on Monday. Nifty PSU Bank was the worst performing index, falling over 3% in intra-day deals.

 

Most experts remain bullish on the banking space from a long-term perspective, but suggest investors be selective and buy only those banks whose non-performing assets are at a manageable level and there is credit growth / earnings visibility READ MORE

12:45 PM

Indian pharma firms renew focus; Dr Reddy's, Cipla eye $100-bn China market

 

Dr Reddy’s Laboratories (DRL) is expanding its presence in China, the world’s second-largest pharmaceutical market, where other drug manufacturers such as Cipla and Lupin are exploring opportunities.

 

The more than $100-billion China market is dominated by local drug manufacturers and multinationals and India’s pharmaceutical exports of around $160 million are a fraction of the companies’ sales. READ MORE

12:30 PM

GAIL Q3 results: LPG, gas transmission segments witness strong traction

 

GAIL’s December 2017 quarter operating performance may have disappointed, but strong revenue growth and net profits being marginally lower than expectations, coupled with good prospects, offer some comfort. Led by strong volume growth across segments, net sales grew 19 per cent year-on-year (y-o-y) to Rs 144.14 billion, and were ahead of Bloomberg’s consensus estimates of Rs 137.5 billion. READ MORE

12:19 PM

Securities Appellate Tribunal defers Sebi- Price Waterhouse hearing

 

The Securities Appellate Tribunal (SAT) on Tuesday deferred hearing in Price Waterhouse's (PW's) appeal against an order passed by the market regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi). The tribunal will next hear the matter on Friday. READ MORE

11:59 AM

Markets at noon

 

S&P BSE Sensex	34,282.79		-0.05%
Nifty 50	10,537.25		-0.02%
S&P BSE 200	4,632.75		0.16%
Nifty 500	9,362.05		0.15%
S&P BSE Mid-Cap	16,961.40		0.65%
S&P BSE Small-Cap	18,598.24		0.73%

11:50 AM

BSE top gainers and losers

11:30 AM

PNB detects $1,772 million fraudulent transactions; stock slips 7%

 

Punjab National Bank (PNB) has slipped 7.4% to Rs 150 on BSE in intra-day trade after the state-owned bank said that it had detected some fraudulent and unauthorised transactions worth about Rs 1.13 trillion ($1,771.69 million approx) at one of its branches in Mumbai. READ MORE

11:18 AM

No reduction in inflows for mutual funds after LTCG, DDT says AMFI

 

The mutual funds industry does not see any reduction in the inflows of funds after the proposal of long term capital gains tax (LTCG) and dividend distribution tax (DDT), an official said here on Tuesday.

 

The industry also expects there would be no level playing field between mutual funds and unit linked insurance plan (ULIP) after the introduction of LTCG and DDT, Association of Mutual Funds of India (AMFI) Chief Executive N. S. Venkatesh said.  READ MORE

11:01 AM

Sectoral Trend