Stock Market Highlights, April 18: Sensex declines for 4th day, drops 455 pts; Nifty below 22k

Stock market highlights on on Thursday, April 18, 2024: In the broader markets, Nifty Midcap ended 0.49 per cent lower at 38,995.70 while Smallcap lost 0.28 per cent, to settle at 16,286.35

3:53 PM

Tech View :: 21,938 make or break level for Nifty in near-term

On the daily charts, we can observe that the Nifty faced resistance at the 22,300 – 22,320 zone where the key hourly moving averages were placed. On the downside the Nifty is now approaching the lower end of the rising channel and the 78.6% Fibonacci retracement level 22,000 – 21,938.

It shall be a crucial level to watch out for during the next few trading sessions. Divergence on the hourly time frame charts suggests that there could be a pullback over the next few trading sessions, however we shall await price confirmation.

Views by: Jatin Gedia – Technical Research Analyst at Sharekhan by BNP Paribas

3:48 PM

Tech View :: Bank Nifty may test 46,500 if bearish sentiment persists

The Bank Nifty Index remains under bearish control, with any upward movements facing aggressive selling, highlighting a prevailing "sell on rise" sentiment among traders.

The major resistance for the index is positioned at 48,000, where significant call writing activity has been observed, indicating strong resistance at this level.

The overall market tone continues to be bearish, and if the selling pressure persists, the index could test its next major support level at 46,500, where the 100-day exponential moving average (EMA) is located.

Views by: Kunal Shah, Senior Technical & Derivative Analyst at LKP Securities

3:42 PM

Currency Check :: Rupee ends flat vs US dollar

3:41 PM

Broader markets :: Mid, SmallCap indices fall in tandem with benchmarks

3:39 PM

Sectoral trends :: All indices erase losses to end up to 1% lower

3:37 PM

Sensex Heatmap :: Pvt banks, ITC, RIL weigh on benchmarks

>> Nestle India, Titan Company, Axis Bank, NTPC, Tata Motors, ITC, Bajaj Finserv, ICICI Bank, and HDFC Bank fell in the range of 1% to 3%

3:35 PM

CLOSING BELL :: Nifty ends below 22,000

3:33 PM

CLOSING BELL :: Sensex sheds 458 points, slips for 4th straight day

3:22 PM

Market Check :: Sensex slides over 400 pts

3:00 PM

Q4 Results :: Deepak Parekh steps down as Chairman, Non-Ex Director of HDFC Life

>> Net profit at Rs 412 crore vs Rs 360 crore YoY

>> Total APE at Rs 4,727 crore vs Rs 5,162 crore YoY

>> VNB at Rs 1,234 crore vs Rs 1,511 crore YoY

>> VNB Margin at 26.1% vs 29.3% YoY

>> HDFC Life misses FY24 guidance on VNB margin

2:51 PM

ICICI Securities downgrades Ashok Leyland to 'Sell', sees 20% downside

Shares of Ashok Leyland fell 2.3 per cent to Rs 172 per share on the BSE in Thursday's intraday after ICICI Securities downgraded the stock to 'Sell' from' Hold'. The brokerage has set a target price of Rs 140 for the stock, which is 20.4 per cent lower than the stock's last closing price. At 2:17 PM, the stock price of Ashok Leyland was quoting 1.9 per cent lower at Rs 172.7 apiece as against an unchanged S&P BSE Sensex. READ MORE

2:46 PM

Tata Motors to use new $1 bn TN plant to make Jaguar Land Rover cars

India's Tata Motors is planning to manufacture Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) luxury cars at a $1 billion plant that it is planning to build in the southern state of Tamil Nadu, two sources with direct knowledge of the plans said. Tata Motors announced plans to invest in a new plant in Tamil Nadu in March but did not give details on which models would be manufactured there. READ MORE

2:43 PM

Bharti Airtel signs deal to merge Sri Lankan unit with Dialog Axiata

Bharti Airtel said on Thursday it has signed an agreement to merge the operations of its Sri Lankan unit with Dialog, the island nation’s largest telecom provider and a subsidiary of Malaysia’s Axiata Group Berhad. Dialog will acquire 100 per cent of the issued shares in Airtel Lanka. In return, Airtel Lanka will be granted a stake in Dialog. "Dialog will issue to Bharti Airtel, ordinary voting shares which will amount to 10.35 per cent of the total issued shares of Dialog by way of a share swap," said Bharti Airtel in a press release. READ MORE

2:23 PM

Broader markets firm amid a volatile session

2:06 PM

Ashok Leyland, South Indian Bank sign MoU to provide financing to dealers

Commercial vehicle maker Ashok Leyland Ltd on Thursday said it has partnered with South Indian Bank for financing dealers. The company has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to provide financing to dealers under the bank's dealer finance programme, Ashok Leyland said in a statement. READ MORE

2:03 PM

Bharti Airtel stock at new high, up 5%; surpasses ICICI Bank in market cap

Shares of Bharti Airtel surpassed ICICI Bank in market capitalisation (market cap) ranking as the stock price of telecom services provider hit a new high of Rs 1,281.40, gaining 5 per cent in Thursday’s intra-day trade on healthy business outlook. The stock surpassed its previous high of Rs 1,244.95 touched on March 22, 2024. Meanwhile, shares of Bharti Airtel partly-paid (PP) hit a new high of Rs 910.05 as they surged 9 per cent in intra-day trade. READ MORE

1:39 PM

Sensex gives up gains, down 150 points

1:35 PM

Analysts bullish on ICICI Lombard outlook; rich valuations may limit upside

The stock price of ICICI Lombard General Insurance hit a fresh 52-week high level of Rs 1,747 on the BSE on Thursday, surging 6 per cent intraday, as analysts remained optimistic on the company's near-term growth prospects post its healthy March quarter (Q4) result for fiscal year 2023-24 (FY24). 

 

Scale benefits, a favorable product mix (higher share of retail health), and improvements in efficiencies across channels, analysts said, should help ICICI Lombard General Insurance improve its combined ratio and return on equity (RoE) over the next couple of years. Read more

 

1:11 PM

Demat accounts hit new high, touch 15 crore in March 2024

The total number of Demat accounts in India has reached a new high of 151 million as of March 2024. There was a significant increase in new Demat account openings in March 2024, with 3.1 million new accounts added. This trend seems to be continuing throughout the year, with an average of 3.1 million new accounts opened each month in the financial year 2024 (FY24), shows data analysed by brokerage Motilal Oswal. READ MORE

1:02 PM

Mastek zooms 20% on UK Defence Ministry deal

IT company Mastek shares surged as much as 19.99 per cent to hit an intraday high of Rs 3,100.25 per share on Thursday, BSE data showed. Mastek shares have soared 23.63 per cent in the last six months, outperforming S&P BSE 500 index, which zoomed 18.35 per cent during the same period. READ MORE

12:34 PM

Max Health shares dip 4% as NSE refuses fine waiver on flouting board norms

Shares of Max Healthcare slipped 4.4 per cent at Rs 782 a piece in Thursday intraday deals. This came after the National Stock Exchange refused to waive off a fine of Rs 2,36,000 on the hospital chain. 

On Wednesday, Max Healthcare informed investors that the waiver filed by the company has not been considered favourably by NSE. Last year in November, the Indian bourses imposed a fine on the company for deviating from the board composition requirements laid down under regulation 17(1) of the SEBI Regulations, 2015. Read more

12:18 PM

Nestle India hits over four-month low amid 'sugar in baby food' row

Shares of Nestle India hit an over four-month low of Rs 2,409.55, falling 5 per cent on Thursday's intraday trade, as the fast moving consumer goods (FMCG) company has been put under the scanner for putting out misleading claims regarding health and nutritional benefits of their products.

The stock price of the packaged foods company hit its lowest level since November 30, 2023. At 11:25 AM, the stock price of Nestle India was trading 3.4 per cent lower at Rs 2,460, as compared to 0.52 per cent rise in the S&P BSE Sensex. The S&P BSE FMCG index, meanwhile, was down 0.1 per cent in an otherwise firm market. Read more

12:00 PM

Bharti Airtel to merge Sri Lanka ops with Dialog Axiata in equity swap deal

Telecom operator Bharti Airtel will merge its Sri Lanka operations with Dialog Axiata in an equity swap deal, a joint statement said on Thursday.

Airtel Lanka's turnover in financial year 2023 was Rs 294 crore and it contributed 0.21 per cent to Bharti Airtel's overall business. Read more

11:45 AM

Dynacons Systems zooms 39% on Rs 233-crore order win from Nabard

Shares of Dynacons Systems & Solutions (Dynacons) hit a new high of Rs 1,311.95 as they surged 16 per cent on the BSE in Thursday's intraday trade amid heavy volumes. In the past two trading days, the stock price of the information technology (IT) enabled services company has zoomed 39 per cent after securing a contract worth Rs 233 crore (all inclusive) from the National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (Nabard). Read more

11:21 AM

Sterlite Tech tumbles 7% on profit booking; Co raises Rs 1,000 cr via QIP

Shares of Sterlite Technologies tumbled 7.4 per cent to Rs 131.7 per share on the BSE in Thursday's intraday trade as investors booked profit post fund raise by the company. 

At 10:48 AM, Sterlite Technologies stock price was quoting 6 per cent lower at Rs 134 per share as against 0.05 per cent rise in the benchmark S&P BSE Sensex index. Read more

11:01 AM

HUL to HDFC Bank and ITC: These 10 NSE 200 stocks may zoom 20-40% in a year

Brokerages remain upbeat on the Indian equity market despite the recent rise in geopolitical tensions globally and a slowdown in consumer demand in the country. They expect the broad-based Nifty 50 to rally by another 11 per cent from its current level over the next year.

According to Bloomberg estimates, the Nifty 50 is expected to reach 24,597.40 by the end of April next year compared to its Tuesday's close of 22,147.90. By comparison, the index is up 22.6 per cent since the end of April 2023 and had rallied 5.63 per cent between April 2022 and April 2023. A rally in the index is likely to be driven by a continued rise in corporate earnings. Read more

10:57 AM

Asian markets update

10:37 AM

Just Dial zooms 13%, hits 52-week high on healthy growth in Q4 profits

Shares of Just Dial hit a 52-week high rising 12.9 per cent in Thursday’s intraday trade at Rs 1,010 a piece. This came after the company delivered handsome quarter four results for the financial year 2023-24. 

Just Dial Ltd on Wednesday reported a 38.44 per cent rise in consolidated net profit to Rs 115.74 crore in the fourth quarter ended March 31, 2024. It had recorded a consolidated net profit of Rs 83.6 crore in the corresponding period of the previous fiscal year. Read more

10:23 AM

Vodafone Idea FPO opens: Price band, how to apply & all you need to know

Vodafone Idea's Rs 18,000-crore follow-on public offer (FPO) will open for subscription on Thursday, April 18. The three-day FPO will close on Monday, April 22, 2024.  

According to reports, the allotment for the Vodafone Idea FPO could be finalised on Tuesday, April 23, 2024. That apart, Vodafone Idea FPO will list on both the exchanges, that is the BSE, and the National Stock Exchange (NSE), with the listing date likely fixed as Thursday, April 25, 2024. Read more

10:07 AM

Power Grid Corporation stock surges 5% on bagging 3 transmission projects

Shares of Power Grid Corporation of India rallied 5 per cent to Rs 289.10 on the BSE in Thursday’s intra-day trade after the company said it has been declared as the successful bidder under tariff based competitive bidding (TBCB) to establish inter-state transmission system  on build, own operate and transfer (BOOT) basis. Power Grid stock had hit a 52-week high of Rs 298.95 on March 7, 2024. Read more