Takeovers Time?

Though there is some sort of institutional activity these days, this is restricted to the same select set of stocks and the nature of the action is more of portfolio-building. Momentum play is now a thing of the past and though traders remember those days with nostalgia, its recurrence is still not visible on the horizon.

Interested quarters in the corporate world, rather than market players or operators, are evincing interest in certain counters, and it may not be surprising to find announcements of takeovers and the like happening in a short while from now, based on the activity happening during this time.

On the offensive

With the worst seemingly over for Big Daddy, the fund is now recovering from the fatigue of forced selling and is now in buy mode. It must be a refreshing change for the managers of the fund to take some decisions based on choice rather than compulsion.

Big Daddy, by now, would have already provisioned to meet its dividend obligations, but it would soon be receiving dividends from the corporate sector which, considering its size, is bound to be substantial.

This should more than provide it with the buffer it requires to operate freely. The fund was spotted scouting around in counters like Satyam Computer, Infosys and a host of other old economy stocks as well.

Aye-Sec on BPCL

BPCL is considered a cut above the rest and offers the best upside once the oil sector is deregulated, according to the latest report of the Aye-Sec brokerage and has upgraded the stock to a buy.

The recent acquisition of a controlling stake of 55.04 per cent in Kochi Refineries (KRL) gives BPCL access to KRL's refining capacity, which bridges the deficit between BPCL's sales and refining capacity. BPCL has also been able to improve its marketshare to 28.3 per cent from 27.7 per cent at the cost of IOC and HPCL.

In its reasoning why BPCL offers the best bet on deregulation, the report states that the company has identified and articulated its overall business philosophy and its strategy for retail products like gasoline and diesel, currently distributed through its network of gas stations numbering 4562 and feels this can create a paradigm shift and help sustain BPCL's retail growth over its peers.

Miscellany

Four lakh shares of MTNL were picked up today presumably by the Picket fund, while there was a buy order for another 3 lakh shares of Hindustan Lever.

Zee Telefilms is witnessing a change of hands with some huge accumulation taking place presumably in line with the company's earlier announcement about its intention on this front.