Market climbs as Infosys rallies on earnings, outlook

The BSE Sensex and Nifty on Friday rose for a consecutive session, paring a weekly loss, as Infosys, the country's second-largest software exporter reported profit that beat estimates and global stocks rallied.

Infosys rallied the most in three months after the company maintained its annual sales forecast. The stock now has the highest weighting on the Sensex, up from a third place on Thursday. Hindustan Unilever climbed to a record, while drugmakers Dr. Reddy's Laboratories and Cipla were among the best performers on the benchmark index.

The Sensex gained 0.7 per cent to 27,458.38 at the close, paring the weekly loss to 1.5 per cent. Net income at Infosys rose 13 per cent to Rs 3,250 crore ($521 million) in the December quarter, exceeding the Rs 3,160 crore median of 29 analysts' estimates in a Bloomberg survey. The Bengaluru-based company kept its forecast for full-year sales to rise seven per cent to nine per cent in dollar terms.

"Spending on technology has improved dramatically, and the forecast given by Infosys is conservative," Trip Chowdhry, a US-based analyst at Global Equities Research, said in an interview to Bloomberg TV India on Friday. "Infosys can easily meet or beat the top-end of its forecast."

Profits at 67 per cent of the 30 Sensex companies beat or matched analyst estimates in the September quarter, versus 46 per cent in the three months ended June and 60 per cent in March, data compiled by Bloomberg show. Earnings are likely to rise 27 per cent over the next year, versus 11 per cent for companies on the MSCI Emerging Markets Index, the data show.

Infosys jumped 5.1 per cent, the steepest climb since October 10. The stock had lost as much as 3.1 per cent on Friday before the results. Tata Consultancy Services increased 2.8 per cent, the most since December 16. The companies were among the best performers on the Sensex on Friday.

Hindustan Unilever soared 5.8 per cent, taking this week's rally to 14 per cent, the most since the week ending May 5, 2013.

Brokerages, including JPMorgan Chase & Co, Credit Suisse Group AG, Kotak Securities and IIFL Holdings have raised their ratings on the stock this week.

"The fast-moving consumer goods pack is being rerated and Hindustan Unilever is the benchmark of the sector," said Harsh Mehta, an analyst at brokerage HDFC Securities Ltd. "There may also be some flight to safety that's benefiting the stock."

Dr Reddy's jumped 3.2 per cent, the most since November 7, and Cipla gained 2.3 per cent, the steepest advance since December 18.

The Sensex rallied 30 per cent in 2014, the most among the world's 20 biggest markets after China. Foreigners bought $16 billion of stocks on expectations economic growth will rebound after Prime Minister Narendra Modi won the biggest electoral mandate in three decades in May.

Global investors sold a net $62 million of local shares on January 8. The Sensex is valued at 15.2 times projected 12-month profits, compared with the MSCI Emerging Markets Index's multiple of 11.2, data compiled by Bloomberg show.