MARKET WRAP: Sensex slips 120 pts, Nifty ends at 10,794; PSBs, autos drag

Nifty PSU Bank index, the top loser of the day, fell 2.10 per cent led by decline in State Bank of India. The Nifty Auto index settled 1.21 per cent lower driven by a fall in Eicher Motors

3:40 PM

Sectoral gainers and losers of the day on NSE

3:34 PM

Gainers and losers of the day on S&P BSE Sensex

3:34 PM

Market at close

The S&P BSE Sensex ended at 36,034, down 120 points or 0.33 per cent, while the broader Nifty50 index settled at 10,794, down 38 points or 0.35 per cent.

3:20 PM

Ashok Leyland, Edelweiss Financial, Mahindra & Mahindra hit 52-week lows

Shares of Ashok Leyland, Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M), Edelweiss Financial Services, BASF India, Finolex Cables, Natco Pharma and Rallis India were among 39 stocks from the S&P BSE 500 index that hit their respective 52-week lows on the BSE in intra-day trade on Wednesday.

 

Aditya Birla Capital, CG Power and Industrial Solutions, Cochin Shipyard, Gujarat Pipavav Port, Jain Irrigation Systems, Philips Carbon Black, Uflex and TV Today Network too hit 52-week lows today. READ MORE

3:13 PM

Top losers on BSE500

COMPANY	PRICE(rs)	CHG(rs)	CHG(%)	VOLUME
CG POWER & INDU.	25.30	-8.45	-25.04	6412287
JINDAL STAIN.	30.00	-2.75	-8.40	76412
JAIN IRRIGATION	50.05	-4.35	-8.00	2520643
HEG	2247.00	-155.95	-6.49	80366
EDELWEISS.FIN.	123.90	-8.30	-6.28	338288

2:58 PM

Global oil supply to swamp demand in 2019 despite output cuts - IEA

The global oil market will struggle this year to absorb fast-growing crude supply from outside OPEC, even with the group's production cuts and U.S. sanctions on Venezuela and Iran, the International Energy Agency said in a report on Wednesday. The IEA left its demand growth forecast for 2019 unchanged from its last report in January at 1.4 million barrels per day. READ MORE

2:47 PM

As sales to US get blocked, Venezuela looks to sell more oil to India

Venezuela's oil exports have tapered off and shifted toward India since new US sanctions began Jan. 28 as state-run oil company PDVSA seeks to replace deliveries to the United States and Europe that were disrupted by payment restrictions. READ MORE

 

2:35 PM

Nifty PSU Bank index is trading over 1% lower

2:24 PM

CG Power tanks 23%

2:18 PM

Brokerages cut Motherson's FY20 profit estimates on weak demand outlook

Motherson Sumi stock was down over 9 per cent over last four trading sessions on weak global automotive demand. Weak demand in key markets such as China and the US, regulatory restrictions related to emissions and higher investments is taking a toll on Motherson Sumi. Given the near-term demand weakness, plant utilisation is being impacted. Analysts at Edelweiss Securities believe that the commissioning of three new plants has coincided with near-term demand weakness, thereby putting pressure on margins. READ MORE

2:04 PM

MARKET CHECK

1:54 PM

Aavas Financiers hits highest level since listing; up 50% from October low

Shares of Aavas Financiers were trading higher for the fifth straight day, rising 3 per cent to Rs 915 apiece on the BSE in intra-day trade on Wednesday. The stock was trading at its highest level since listing on October 8, 2018. READ MORE

 

1:35 PM

Leg up for Bata: Stock hits 52-week high; analysts expect it to do better

The stock of footwear major – Bata India – surged about 18 per cent in the last three months and hit its 52-week high on Wednesday, outperforming the BSE FMCG index that rose 2.2 per cent. Factors such as improving earnings visibility have turned investors bullish. Bata’s better than expected December 2018 quarter (Q3) numbers, announced on Tuesday reinforced investor confidence about the company’s prospects. Thus, the stock, trading at 46 times FY20 estimated earnings, should see good upsides from the current levels, say analysts. READ MORE

1:27 PM

Goldman Sachs says OPEC's 'shock and awe' will drive oil higher

Goldman Sachs Group Inc is doubling down on its bullish outlook for oil. The bank still forecasts that global benchmark Brent crude will hit $67.50 a barrel next quarter, driven by healthy demand and supply curbs by OPEC and its allies such as Russia, analysts including Damien Courvalin said in a Feb. 12 report. Goldman’s estimate is around 7 per cent higher than current price levels. READ MORE

1:13 PM

Stocks that hit 52-week high on BSE500

COMPANY	PRICE(rs)	52 WK HIGH	CHG(rs)	CHG(%)
BATA INDIA	1247.75	1249.80	58.75	4.94
UPL	815.00	816.95	20.10	2.53
WIPRO	376.55	378.00	2.25	0.60

1:00 PM

Bharat Forge reports Q3 net profit at Rs 309.8 crore vs Rs 227.4 crore QoQ

12:46 PM

Dilip Buildcon extends gain; stock surges 29% in one week post Q3 results

Shares of Dilip Buildcon (DBL) rallied 13 per cent to Rs 415 apiece on Wednesday, extending its previous day's 4 per cent gain on the BSE after the company completed rehabilitation and up-gradation of NH-18 (New NH-40) from 108km/850km to 160km/200km (Rayachoty to Kadapa section) in Andhra Pradesh. The company said the provisional completion certificate has been issued by the National Authority of India on February 11, 2019, and has declared the project fit for entry into commercial operation as on September 10, 2016, and consequently, the company is entitled to a maximum bonus of Rs. 3.56 crore in lieu of earlier completion (60 days prior to the schedule completion date) of the said project. READ MORE

12:27 PM

A K Bhattacharya | PSUs' capital outlay down for 1st time in 4 yrs; future could be more tense

How has the Narendra Modi government managed the financial and investment needs of India’s public sector undertakings (PSUs)? The Union Budgets for the last five years tell us an interesting story. The popular narrative so far has been that the Modi government has squeezed public sector outlays and the total investments of PSUs grew at a tardy pace in this period. But take a look at the five years of the Modi government, the story looks a little different. READ MORE

12:16 PM

A $23 bn manager is betting on India's struggling real estate sector

A Bahrain-based investment manager wants to fill a vacuum in lending to Indian property developers that have $18 billion of debt to repay, aiming to capitalise on a credit crunch that’s narrowed their borrowing options.

 

Investcorp Bank BSC, which manages about $23 billion of assets, plans to provide structured lending to developers faced with borrowing constraints, Executive Chairman Mohammed Mahfoodh Alardhi said in an interview in Mumbai. The company started its India operations in January after acquiring the private equity and real estate funds of IDFC Alternatives Ltd. READ MORE

12:07 PM

Market check

12:06 PM

SECTOR WATCH :: Pharma

COMPANY NAME	LATEST	HIGH	LOW	CHG (Rs)	CHG(%)	VALUE (rs CR)	VOLUME
SUN PHARMA.INDS.	441.95	454.40	440.00	5.20	1.19	48.51	1097701
IOL CHEMICALS	213.75	223.80	207.25	14.85	7.47	7.70	360049
SYNCOM FORMUL.	0.92	0.93	0.89	0.02	2.22	0.01	161076
AUROBINDO PHARMA	733.35	769.95	729.60	-34.70	-4.52	10.01	136433
STRIDES PHARMA	405.20	420.00	400.60	-7.05	-1.71	3.10	76616

11:52 AM

Easing core inflation sets stage for more interest rate cuts by RBI

India’s headline and core inflation rates are set to converge in the coming months as the economy slows, increasing the chance of more interest rate cuts.

 

The core measure -- which strips out volatile fuel and food costs -- has remained sticky at around 6 per cent and is a key reason economists cautioned against more rate cuts after last week’s surprise easing. It softened to 5.4 per cent in January, according to economists at Yes Bank Ltd. and Axis Bank Ltd. Pranjul Bhandari, chief India economist at HSBC Holdings Plc, sees it slowing to as low as 4 per cent this year. READ MORE

11:37 AM

Top gainers and losers on S&P BSE Sensex

11:31 AM

Equirus Securities on Dr Lal PathLabs

Dr Lal PathLabs intends to follow a cluster approach for western and southern regions with a focus only on Bengaluru and Pune (both contributing Rs 200mn each), and will eye acquisitions to expand the revenue base. Management stated that more than valuations, finding a quality asset is proving to be more difficult.

 

Management listed the following strategic initiatives:

- High-end tests under the brand name Neurology pro & Oncology pro.

- Marketing campaign on diabetes in Q3.

- Enhanced customer interactions (digital and offline) which have increased walk-ins.

- Bundled package initiative Swasth (13% of revenues) which has increased samples per patient.

11:23 AM

Natco Pharma hits 52-week low on disappointing December earnings

Shares of Natco Pharma hit a 52-week low of Rs 620 apiece, down 7 per cent on the BSE in early morning trade, after the company reported 27 per cent drop in consolidated net profit at Rs 159 crore for the quarter ended December 2018 (Q3FY19). The pharmaceutical company had posted a profit of Rs 217 crore in a year-ago quarter. Operational revenue declined 1 per cent to Rs 557 crore against Rs 562 crore in the corresponding quarter of previous fiscal. READ MORE

11:07 AM

Dilip Buildcon is trading 11% higher

10:56 AM

Kotak Securities maintains buy rating on MOIL Ltd

We believe, manganese ore prices to remain subdued due to the weak steel price outlook and the same would reflect on the demand of the manganese ore in the near term. The company has revised its prices downwards, which will impact the realisation in the coming quarter. Factoring the same, we have revised our earnings downwards to Rs15.4 (earlier Rs19.4) and Rs18 (earlier Rs17.2) for FY19E and FY20E, respectively.

At CMP, the stock trades at 10.2x/8.8x FY19E/FY20E earnings and on EV/EBITDA, it trades at 3.9x/2.8x FY19E/FY20E EBITDA. We reiterate our BUY rating on the stock with revised target price of Rs200 (earlier Rs260), lowering our valuation multiple to 4.5x FY20E EV/EBITDA, due to weak outlook in the near term

10:55 AM

CG Power tanks 15% as net loss widens in December quarter

Shares of CG Power and Industrial Solutions have declined 15 per cent to Rs 28.60 apiece, also their 52-week low on the BSE, after the company reported a consolidated net loss of Rs 150 crore in December 2018 quarter (Q3FY19). The performance impacted mainly on account of an exceptional loss of Rs 117 crore.

The Gautam Thapar-led Avantha Group company had posted a loss of Rs 28 crore in the year-ago quarter. READ MORE

10:55 AM

Kotak Securities on VRL Logistics

We see VRL as a Logistics player which has created a niche for itself in the transport industry and a player who has overcome the nuances of the industry through effective practices within the company. This has enabled the company to outperform its peers in every financial parameter.

The GST Act, Motor Vehicle Act and E-way bill are expected to improve business prospects of the company with full benefits accruing from FY21E. We estimate strong earnings growth in long term for the company with improvement in EBIDTA margins and return ratios. We continue to remain positive on the company and value the company at 24x FY20 earnings and Recommend BUY with an unchanged target price of Rs 355

10:52 AM

ICICI Securities on Sun Pharma

We believe specialty portfolio would require further investments in near term in order to drive sustainable benefits over long term. We reduce our revenue and PAT estimates by 0-2% and 2-9% for FY19-21 to factor in lower domestic sales, higher interest cost. expected increase in employee expenses on field force addition for specialty portfolio and higher effective tax rate.

We expect margin recovery to continue in FY20-21 with increasing revenue contribution of specialty portfolio. We remain positive on the stock considering i) ramp up in revenue from branded/specialty business in US ii) 460bps margin expansion over FY18- 21, and iii) potential to buy inorganic growth based on strong balance sheet.