Stocks to watch: Voda Idea, ONGC, Airtel, autos, HUL, JSPL, Future Grp stks

At 08:45 am, Nifty futures on the Singapore Exchange (SGX) were trading 11.5 points or 0.11 per cent lower at 10,247, indicating a flat start for the Indian market on Wednesday.

Here's a look at the top stocks that may remain in focus today - 

Vodafone Idea: Vodafone Idea's pre-tax loss rose 73 per cent to Rs 11,742 crore in the March quarter of 2019-20 owing to exceptional expenses. The telecom firm had posted a pre-tax loss of Rs 6,758 crore in the same quarter last year.

ONGC: State-run Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) reported a pre-tax loss of Rs 10,529 crore in the fourth quarter of the financial year 2019-20 (Q4FY20) because of a drop in crude oil prices, the impact of the lockdown, and exchange losses.

Bharti Airtel: The Carlyle Group on Wednesday announced that it will invest $235 million for approximately 25 per cent stake in Nxtra Data Ltd, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Bharti Airtel engaged in the data centre business.

Jindal Steel & Power (Mauritius), or JSPML, a subsidiary of Naveen Jindal-led Jindal Steel and Power (JSPL) said on Tuesday that it has accepted a binding offer from Templar Investments to divest its entire stake in its Oman asset, Jindal Shadeed Iron and Steel (JSIS Oman).

Future Group stocks: The Kishore Biyani-led Future group has zeroed in on SBI General to sell its majority stake in the general insurance joint venture, and on Premji Invest for its life insurance venture stake, according to this report by Business Standard.

RITES: RITES Ltd on Tuesday reported a 4.28 per cent decline in consolidated profit at Rs 143.93 crore for the quarter ended March 31, 2020. The railways consultancy firm had posted a consolidated profit of Rs 150.38 crore in the corresponding quarter of previous fiscal, it said in a regulatory filing to the BSE.

ZEEL, YES Bank: The private sector lender has filed a suit at the Bombay High Court against Zee Entertainment Enterprises and its board of directors, over their alleged failure to honour obligations under a disputed guarantee related to a 2016 loan of around $50 million, according to a report by Moneycontrol. 

Auto stocks: Automakers will start releasing their June quarter sales numbers from today. Further ease in lockdown, attractive financing schemes, and expectations of normal monsoon could support automobile companies to build-on the demand recovery seen in May, and post improved sales figures on a monthly basis for June 2020, believe analysts.

HUL, other FMCG firms: FMCG major HUL Chairman Sanjiv Mehta on Tuesday cautioned that the "risk of recession remains real" but it must not be taken as a foregone conclusion while stating that the path back to growth will depend on a range of drivers, including the trajectory of coronavirus, effectiveness of containment efforts and economic steps taken by governments, among others.

Kalpataru Power Transmission Ltd (KPTL) on Tuesday said it has secured new orders worth Rs 956 crore. KPTL received orders from India, Africa and Middle East in T&D business, the company said in a regulatory filing.

Godfrey Phillips India: Net profit of  the company declined 19.86 per cent to Rs 38.69 crore in the quarter ended March 2020 as against Rs 48.28 crore in the year-ago period. 

Bank of Baroda: The lender's board has approved issuance of Basel III Compliant Additional Tier I Bonds for aggregate total issue size not exceeding Rs.2000 crore in single or multiple tranches. 

Marico: The company informed that it has acquired the remaining 55 per cent equity stake in Zed Lifestyle from its existing shareholders.