Stock Market Today: Sensex, Nifty Close At Four-Month Low As Metals, IT, Autos Lead Decline

Overseas investors in Indian equities remained net sellers for the fourth day in a row on Monday.

Foreign portfolio investors offloaded equities worth Rs 2,002.52 crore, according to data from the National Stock Exchange.

Domestic institutional investors were net buyers for the fourth day in a row and mopped up stocks worth Rs 2,231.66 crore.

Foreign institutions have remained net sellers of Rs 47,996.12 crore worth of Indian stocks so far in 2023.

The yield on the 10-year bond closed 3 bps higher at 7.42% on Monday. It closed at 7.39% on Friday.

Source: Bloomberg

The local currency weakened by 10 paise to 82.85 against the greenback at close on Monday. It closed at 82.75 on Friday.

Source: Bloomberg

Indian equity benchmarks declined in trade for the seventh straight day after opening with losses on Monday as metals, I.T., and auto stocks fell.

The headline index, S&P BSE Sensex closed at its lowest level since in over four months or 19 weeks since Oct. 20, 2022. On the other hand, NSE Nifty 50 fell declined the most around the same period since Oct. 17, 2022.

Asian markets declined in trade. Whereas, European markets and the U.S. stock futures were higher, after the Wall Street logged worst week since December on Friday.

Futures on the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 rose 0.5%, while contracts on the S&P 500 gained about 0.4%.

The S&P BSE Sensex closed down 176 points or 0.30% at 59,288.35 while the NSE Nifty 50 was 73 point or 0.42% lower at 17,392.70.

ICICI Bank Ltd., Power Grid Corp of India Ltd., Kotak Mahindra Bank Ltd., HDFC Life Insurance Co., and State Bank of India were the top gainers in the gauge.

Whereas, Adani Enterprises Ltd., Bajaj Auto Ltd., UPL Ltd., Tata Steel Ltd., and Infosys Ltd. were the top losers amongst the NSE Nifty 50 constituents.

The broader market indices were trading lower; S&P BSE MidCap was down 0.69% whereas S&P BSE SmallCap was lower by 1.28%.

Seventeen out of the 20 sectors compiled by BSE declined while S&P BSE Realty, S&P BSE Financial Services, S&P BSE Bankex advanced in trade.

The market breadth was largely unchanged. About 971 stocks rose, 2,581 declined, and 3,735 remained unchanged on the BSE.

Shares of Uflex Ltd. pared some losses and declined 14.58% to Rs 368.1 apiece in trade on Monday after it hit a 52-week low in trade.

The Income Tax Department on Feb. 21 conducted searches at multiple premises linked to packaging major Uflex as part of an investigation against the company for alleged tax evasion, officials said.

Around 60-70 premises, including the Noida-based company headquarters, in Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Gujarat, West Bengal, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka are being covered, they said.

The stock declined as much as 15.76% intraday to Rs 360.75 apiece, falling the most in 52-weeks.

The scrip has been falling in trade for seven sessions and it has declined as much as 25.33%.

Total traded volume stood at 20.1 times its 30-day average. The relative strength index was at 7, implying that the stock must be oversold.

Source: Bloomberg, Exchange filing

• Gold spot prices fell to a two-month low in trade on Monday.

• The prices touched an intraday low of $1,806.79, which is the lowest since Dec. 29, 2022, when the prices fell to $1,804.34.

Source: Bloomberg

Shares of Adani Enterprises Ltd. declined 9.32% in trade to Rs 1,193 apiece in trade on Monday. It fell as much as 14.3% intraday.

Source: Bloomberg

Indian equity benchmarks opened with losses on Monday after declining for the sixth consecutive session on Friday, mirroring the seven-day losing streak from eight months ago.

European and U.S. stock futures retreated on Monday while the Asian equities slid in a choppy trading session as the investors weighed-in on forecasts for rate hikes from the Federal Reserve following hot inflation data.

Contracts for the Euro Stoxx 50 and S&P 500 were little changed while those for the Nasdaq 100 gained 0.1%.

As of 12:47 p.m., the S&P BSE Sensex was down 375 points or 0.63% at 59,089 while the NSE Nifty 50 was 137 point or 0.78% lower at 17,329.30.

ICICI Bank Ltd., Kotak Mahindra Bank Ltd., State Bank of India, HDFC Ltd., and Power Grid Corp of India Ltd. were the top gainers in the gauge.

Whereas, Adani Enterprises Ltd., Bajaj Auto Ltd., UPL Ltd., Tata Steel Ltd., and Tata Motors Ltd. were the top losers amongst the NSE Nifty 50 constituents.

ICICI Bank Ltd., Kotak Mahindra Bank Ltd., State Bank of India, HDFC Ltd., and Power Grid Corp of India Ltd. were the top gainers in the gauge.

Whereas, Adani Enterprises Ltd., Bajaj Auto Ltd., UPL Ltd., Tata Steel Ltd., and Tata Motors Ltd. were the top losers amongst the NSE Nifty 50 constituents.The broader market indices were trading lower; S&P BSE MidCap was down 1.32% whereas S&P BSE SmallCap was lower by 1.31%.

Seventeen out of the 20 sectors compiled by BSE declined while S&P BSE Realty, S&P BSE Financial Services, S&P BSE Bankex advanced in trade.

The market breadth was skewed in favour of the bears. About 824 stocks rose, 2,588 declined, and 3,597 remained unchanged on the BSE.

• Company's board approved the transfer of its cargo business to its subsidiary SpiceXpress and Logistics on a slump sale basis for about Rs 2,557 crore.

• Board approved converting liabilities of about $29.5 million (approx Rs 244.6 crore) with Carlyle Aviation Partners, into equity. The equity will be allotted on preferential basis at price of Rs 48 per equity share.

• The board has proposed to seek enabling approval for raising fresh capital of up to Rs 2,500 crore via qualified institutional placement.

• Company will also acquire entire share capital of the Ireland-based, AS Air Lease 41, in order to acquire the company's two Boeing model 737-800 airframes.

Source: Exchange filing

The benchmarks declined in trade on Monday and the yield of the 10-year bond spiked to a three-month high.

Source: Bloomberg

Infosys Ltd., TCS Ltd., ITC Ltd., and Larsen and Toubro Ltd. dragged the benchmark Sensex in trade, in terms of their points contribution.

Source: BSE

Shares of CESC Ltd. declined 3.19% to Rs 69.9 apiece in trade on Monday after 38.2 lakh shares changed hands ina bunched trade.

The stock declined as much as 4.36% intraday to Rs 69.05 apiece.

Total traded volume stood at 8.2 times its 30-day average. The relative strength index was at 30.32.

Out of the 16 analysts tracking the company, 15 maintain a 'buy' rating, one recommend a 'hold' and two suggest to 'sell' the stock.

The return potential as calculated by the consensus of analyst estimates, stand at an upside of 46.8% over the next 12 months.

Source: Bloomberg, Exchange filing

Yield on the 10-year bond spikes to 7.42% intraday, the most in three months since Nov. 7, 2022.

Source: Bloomberg

Shares of information technology companies declined in trade on Wednesday and the headline index NSE Nifty 50 was lower by 0.88% in trade.

The NSE IT Index was down 2.75% in trade. All the 10 constituents compiled by the gauge declined in trade.

Mphasis Ltd., Coforge Ltd., Larsen and Toubro Technology Services Ltd., LTIMindtree Ltd., Infosys Ltd., Persistent Sytems Ltd., TCS Ltd., Wipro Ltd., Tech Mahindra Ltd., and HCL Technologies Ltd., declined in trade.

Source: NSE

Shares of IRB Infrastructure Developers Ltd. advanced 3.57% to Rs 29 apiece in trade on Monday.

The company received Letter of Award from the National Highways Authority of India for the upgradation to six lane with paved shoulder of NH-27 from Samakhiyali to Santalpur sections.

The total consideration of the said project stands at Rs 2,132 crore.

Total traded volume stood at 4.3 times its 30-day average. The relative strength index was at 49.

Out of the 10 analysts tracking the company, eight maintain a 'buy' rating, two recommend a 'hold' and two suggest to 'sell' the stock.

The return potential as calculated by the consensus of analyst estimates, stand at an downside of 4.4% over the next 12 months.

Source: Bloomberg, Exchange filing

• All Adani Group company stocks declined in trade on Monday, except Adani Ports and SEZ Ltd., the shares of which advanced 1.6% in trade, beating the losses on benchmark NSE Nifty 50, which was trading lower by 0.43%.

• Adani Total Gas Ltd., Adani Green Energy Ltd., and Adani Transmission Ltd., were locked in a lower circuit of 5% in trade.

Source: Bloomberg

Shares of One97 Communications Ltd., the owner and operator of payments platform Paytm, gained over 5% in early trade after Bloomberg reported that Airtel's Sunil Mittal is seeking a stake in the fintech giant.

Further, China's Ant Group is also considering selling some of its shares in Paytm to keep its holding within a required threshold, Bloomberg reported.

The stock gained over 5% for the second day in a row on Monday.

Shares of Paytm gained as much as 5.26% to Rs 656.3 apiece. Of the 12 analysts tracking the company, nine maintain a 'buy,' three suggest a 'hold,' and none recommend a 'sell', according to Bloomberg data. The return potential of the stock implies an upside of 46.7%.

Source: Bloomberg, Exchange filing

Shares of SpiceJet Ltd. advanced 3.02% to Rs 40.9 apiece in trade on Monday. The benchmark NSE Nifty 50, on the other hand, was lower by 0.24% in trade.

As per an exchange filing, the company’s board will meet on Feb. 27 to consider issue of shares on preferential issues and raising fresh capital through issue of eligible securities to qualified institutional buyers.

Company's net profit rose 160% to Rs 110.5 crore annually in the third-quarter of the current fiscal. The profit stood at Rs 42.5 crore,as compared to the same period in the previous financial year.

SpiceJet Q3 FY23 Highlights (YoY)

• Revenue rose 2% to Rs 2,317 crore Vs Rs 2,263 crore

• Net Profit rose 160% to Rs 110.5 crore vs Rs 42.5 crore

• EBITDAR at Rs 89.83 crore Vs Rs 250 crore

• EBITDAR margin at 3.9% Vs 11%

The stock rose as much as 4.28% intraday to Rs 41.4 apiece.

Total traded volume stood at 16.1 times its 30-day average. The relative strength index was at 64.

Out of the five analysts tracking the company, two maintain a 'buy' rating, one recommends a 'hold' and two suggest to 'sell' the stock.

Source: Bloomberg, Exchange filing

The broader market indices were trading lower; S&P BSE MidCap was down 0.84% whereas S&P BSE SmallCap was lower by 0.63%.

Eighteen out of the 19 sectors compiled by BSE declined while only S&P BSE Realty advanced in trade.

The market breadth was skewed in favour of the bears. About 872 stocks rose, 1,616 declined, and 2,647 remained unchanged on the BSE.

Source: BSE

Adani Ports and SEZ Ltd., Asian Paints Ltd., Cipla Ltd., NTPC Ltd., and Britannia Industries Ltd. were the top gainers in the gauge.

Whereas, Bajaj Auto Ltd., Adani Enterprises Ltd., Infosys Ltd., Hindalco Industries Ltd., and Tech Mahindra Ltd. were the top losers amongst the NSE Nifty 50 constituents.

Indian equity benchmarks opened with losses on Monday after declining for the sixth consecutive session on Friday, mirroring the seven-day losing streak from eight months ago.

Equities in Asia declined on Monday after heavy selling on the Wall Street late last week as investors weighed-in on forecasts for the U.S. interest rates following hot inflation data.

Shares dropped in Australia and South Korea while fluctuating in China and Japan. U.S. futures ticked higher, taking the edge off Friday’s slump of more than 1% for the S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100, which each suffered their worst week since December.

At pre-open, the S&P BSE Sensex was down 133 points or 0.22% at 59,331.31 while the NSE Nifty 50 was 37 point or 0.21% lower at 17,428.60.

The S&P BSE Sensex was down 133 points or 0.22% at 59,331.31 while the NSE Nifty 50 was 37 point or 0.21% lower at 17,428.60.

Source: Bloomberg

The yield on the 10-year bond opened 2 bps higher at 7.41% on Monday. It closed at 7.39% on Friday

Source: Bloomberg

The local currency weakened by 10 paise to 82.85 against the greenback at open on Monday. It closed at 82.75 on Friday.

Source: Bloomberg

• U.S. Dollar Index at 105.1

• U.S. 10-year bond yield at 3.93%

• Brent crude up 0.02% to $83.18 per barrel

• Nymex crude at $76.39 per barrel

• SGX Nifty down 0.07% to 17,531 as of 7:32 a.m.

• Bitcoin down 0.01% to $23,558.40

• Jindal Steel & Power: Promoter group Opelina Sustainable Services realsed a pledge of 12,350 shares and promoter group Siddeshwari Tradex revoked a pledge of 44 lakh shares between Feb. 22-23.

• Sun Pharma Advanced Research Company: Promoter group Raksha Valia created a pledge of 22 lakh shares and promoter group Sudhir Valis created a pledge of 18 lakh shares on Feb. 22.

• PC Jeweller: Silver Stallion sells 30.06 lakh shares (0.65%) at Rs 24.65 apiece.

• Wheels India: Trichur Sundaram Santhanam & Family bought 1.51 lakh shares (0.63%), ABI Showatech (India) sold 1.51 lakh shares (0.63%) at Rs 506.3 apiece.

• Redington: Synnex Mauritius sold 18.86 lakh shares (24.13%), Synnex Technology International Corporation bought 18.86 lakh shares (24.13%) at Rs 170.45 apiece.

Foseco India, Rain Industries, Vesuvius India

• Piramal Enterprises: The board is scheduled to meet on March 1 to issue non-convertible debentures worth Rs 100 crore on private placement basis, with an option to retain oversubscription up to Rs 500 crore.

• Power Grid Corporation of India: A directors’ panel approved aggregate investment to the tune of Rs 804 crore in four projects.

• Indiabulls Housing Finance: The company will issue non-convertible debentures worth Rs 100 crore, with the option to retain oversubscription up to Rs 800 crore, aggregating up to Rs 900 crore.

• SpiceJet: The company’s board will now meet on Feb. 27 to consider issue of shares on preferential issues and raising fresh capital through issue of eligible securities to qualified institutional buyers.

• NBCC India: The company received an order worth Rs 350 crore for planning, design, execution/ construction of buildings and its services and other maintenance and upgradation works of existing buildings at Motilal Nehru National Institute of Technology, Allahabad. In the month of January 2023, the company secured total business of Rs 194.17 crore.

• PVR: The company opened an 11-screen multiplex at Lulu Mall in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh.

• Edelweiss Financial Services: The company has received shareholders’ approval for the proposed demerger of its wealth management business.

• Bharat Electronics: The company opened its new software development centre in Visakhapatnam, which will offer SaaS services for various applications to both defence and non-defence sectors.

• IRB Infra: Received Letter of Award from the National Highways Authority of India for the project for the upgradation to six lane with paved shoulder of NH-27 from Samakhiyali to Santalpur sections.

• Kalpataru Power Transmission: The company has successfully completed the sale and transfer of an additional 25% stake in Kohima-Mariani Transmission, to Apraava Energy. Post the transaction, the company has now transferred an aggregate of 48% stake in KMTL, with an agreement to sell balance 26% to Apraava, after obtaining requisite regulatory and other approvals.

• Granules India: Received ANDA Approval for Losartan Potassium Tablets. The current annual U.S. market for Losartan potassium Tablets is approximately $336 million, according to MAT Dec 2022, IQVIA/IMS Health.

Asian markets are set to fall after a heavy selling on Wall Street late last week as investors weighed-in on forecasts for the U.S. interest rates following hot inflation data.

The S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 dropped more than 1% Friday, dragging the two U.S. indexes each to their worst week since December. The Nasdaq Golden Dragon index of Chinese companies fell 3.9% Friday in another sign of likely selling pressure in Asia Monday.

Meanwhile, the yield on 10-year Treasuries advanced to 3.93%. Crude prices were trading around $83-mark, while Bitcoin was trading below 24,000-level.

At 7:32 a.m., the Singapore-traded SGX Nifty, an early indicator of India's benchmark Nifty 50, was down 0.07% at 17,531 .

Domestic benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty erased opening gains and logged the lowest weekly loss in eight months, on Friday.

Rupee erased gains from the opening trade to close marginally lower against the U.S. dollar in the last session of the week.

Overseas investors in Indian equities remained net sellers for the third day in a row on Friday. Foreign portfolio investors offloaded equities worth Rs 1,470.34 crore, while the domestic institutional investors were net buyers for the third day in a row and mopped up stocks worth Rs 1,400.98 crore.