Equity indices off day's high; breadth negative

Barometers saw pared gains in mid-afternoon trade as profit booking emerged at higher levels. The Nifty took a support at 14,700 mark. Global stocks were trading higher as investors hoped for more economic stimulus from U.S. President Joe Biden.

At 14:28 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, soared 277.63 points or 0.56% at 50,069.99. The Nifty 50 index added 77.4 points or 0.53% at 14,722.90.

The Sensex hit a record high of 50,184.0 and the Nifty scaled a fresh all time high of 14,753.55 during intraday trade.

The broader market traded with small gains. The S&P BSE Mid-Cap index rose 0.23% while the S&P BSE Small-Cap index gained 0.11%.

The market breadth was negative. On the BSE, 1,279 shares rose and 1,666 shares fell. A total of 179 shares were unchanged.

COVID-19 Update:

Total COVID-19 confirmed cases worldwide stood at 9,68,68,849 with 20,74,886 deaths. India reported 1,92,308 active cases of COVID-19 infection and 1,52,869 deaths while 1,02,65,706 patients have been discharged, according to the data from the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India.

Buzzing Index:

The Nifty Realty slipped 1.33% to 333.9, snapping its two-day winning streak. The index rallied 4.2% in the past two days.

Prestige Estates Projects (down 2.63%), Phoenix Mills (down 2.08%), Godrej Properties (down 2%), Mahindra Lifespace Developers (down 1.94%), Sobha (down 1.48%), Oberoi Realty Ltd (down 1.36%) were top losers in realty segment.

Stocks in Spotlight:

AAVAS Financiers rose 0.97% after the company's consolidated net profit rose 25.8% to Rs 85.46 crore on a 29.5% increase in total income to Rs 310.07 crore in Q3 FY21 over Q3 FY20. Profit before tax in Q3 December 2020 stood at Rs 110.29 crore, up by 37.1% from Rs 80.43 crore in Q3 December 2019. Current tax expense increased by 47.8% year-on-year (YoY) to Rs 21.21 crore. Impairment charge in financial instruments surged to Rs 16.16 crore in the third quarter from Rs 1.34 crore in the same period last year

Tejas Networks was locked in an upper circuit of 5% at Rs 144.05 after the company reported a consolidated net profit of Rs 9.23 crore in Q3 FY21 as against a net loss of Rs 112.06 crore in Q3 FY20. Net sales jumped 55.6% year-on-year (YoY) to Rs 134.88 crore during the quarter. The company posted a pre-tax loss of Rs 9.23 crore in Q3 December 2020 as compared to a pre-tax loss of Rs 14.78 crore in Q3 December 2019.

Syngene International gained 0.85% to Rs 616.6 after the drug maker posted a 11.3% rise in consolidated net profit to Rs 102.2 crore on a 12.6% rise in net sales to Rs 584.5 crore in Q3 December 2020 over Q3 December 2019. The drug manufacturer said its third-quarter revenue growth was driven by a sustained performance from all divisions. Continued focus on cost control measures and improving operational efficiency have underpinned profitability and delivered a strong profit margin. Consolidated EBITDA grew by 11% to Rs 193 crore in Q3 December 2020 from Rs 173 crore in Q3 December 2019. EBITDA margin remained stable at 32% in Q3 December 2020 over Q3 December 2019.

Aditya Birla Fashion and Retail (ABFRL) added 1.24% after the Competition Commission of India (CCI) approved the Flipkart-Aditya Birla Fashion deal. The deal was announced in October 2020. The board of ABFRL had approved raising Rs 1500 crore through preferential issue of equity shares to Flipkart Group at Rs 205 per share.

Numbers to Track:

In the foreign exchange market, the partially convertible rupee appreciated to 72.9650 compared with its previous closing of 73.05.

The yield on 10-year benchmark federal paper was stable at 5.942%.

MCX Gold futures for 5 February 2021 settlement rose 0.17% to Rs 49,620.

The US Dollar index (DXY), which tracks the greenback's value against a basket of currencies, fell 0.14% to 90.345.

In the commodities market, Brent crude for March 2021 settlement fell 40 cents to $55.68 a barrel.

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