MARKET WRAP: Sensex up 59 pts; PSU banks, IT stocks rally; metals crack

All that happened in the markets today

The domestic equity market ended Monday's choppy session on a flat note as market participants chose to stay on the sidelines in the absence of any clear signs with respect to Coronavirus (Covid-19) cases in India. Moreover, a crash in crude oil prices and weak global markets also dented investor sentiment. 

The S&P BSE Sensex settled at 31,648, with HDFC Bank (up around 4 per cent) being the top gainer, followed by Infosys (up 3.75 per cent) and Sun Pharma (up 3.6 per cent). 

On the NSE, the benchmark index Nifty ended at 9,262, down 5 points or 0.05 per cent. 

The S&P BSE Sensex ended 59 points or 0.19 per cent higher at 31,648 levels while the NSE's Nifty settled at 9,262, down around 5 points or 0.05 per cent. 

Sectorally, metal stocks cracked the most with the Nifty Metal index ending over 3 per cent lower at 1,758 levels. Out of 15 constituents, 13 ended in the red and just 2 in the green after Indian Steel Association (ISA) said Indian steel demand is expected to plunge to multi-year lows in 2020, hit by slowdowns in the construction, automotive and rail sectors as India fights the coronavirus with a protracted lockdown. 

Auto, FMCG, and private bank stocks also slipped in the trade. Nifty Auto fell 1.7 per cent to 5,592 points while Nifty FMCG fell around 2 per cent to 28,634 levels. Nifty Private Bank index ended at 11,081.45, down over 1 per cent while Nifty Bank fell a per cent at 20,514. 

In the broader market, the S&P BSE MidCap index ended at 11,799, down 0.21 per cent while the S&P BSE SmallCap gained 0.8 per cent to 10,887 levels. 

Among individual stocks, IT major Infosys ended around 4 per cent higher at Rs 652.90 apiece on the BSE ahead of its March quarter results. 

Shares of HDFC Bank rose 6 per cent to Rs 961 on the BSE during the day after the bank’s net interest income (NII) grew 16.2 per cent year-on-year (YoY) at Rs 15,204 crore in the January-March quarter (Q4FY20), exceeding Street expectations. The stock ended at Rs 946m up nearly 4 per cent. READ MORE
 

Global markets

Caution recaptured world markets on Monday as another drubbing for US crude oil futures kicked off a week of data and earnings that will drive home the damage being inflicted by global coronavirus lockdowns.

European stocks made a choppy start, with the pan-regional swinging in and out of positive territory in early trading. London's FTSE and Germany's DAX were up 0.2 per cent.

E-Mini futures for the S&P 500 ESc1 slipped nearly 0.5 per cent too, after Wall Street enjoyed a strong end to last week, though it barely seemed to reflect the latest violent turbulence in oil markets.

In commodity markets, oil prices fell, depressed by concerns US storage facilities will soon be full as the novel coronavirus pandemic destroys demand and as companies prepare to report their worst quarterly earnings since the 2008 financial crisis.

Brent was down 73 cents, or 2.6 per cent, to $27.35 a barrel at the time of writing of this report. The front-month May WTI contract fell $3.53, or 19.3 per cent, to $14.74 a barrel.

(With inputs from Reuters)

4:11 PM

MARKET COMMENT | Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Financial Services

"Uncertainty ruled the markets and lack of direction from earnings results or the global markets meant that the Indian benchmark indices ended flat after a volatile trading day. Sentiments were mixed regarding the recovery in corporate earnings, post easing of lockdown measures, and effectiveness of RBI measures to infuse liquidity into the financial system. Rate of spread of virus infections and stock-specific earnings guidance will be in focus."

 

4:08 PM

Sectoral gainers and losers on the NSE

4:08 PM

MARKET AT CLOSE | Top gainers and losers on the S&P BSE Sensex

3:40 PM

CLOSING BELL

The S&P BSE Sensex ended 59 points or 0.19 per cent higher at 31,648 levels while the NSE's Nifty settled at 9,262, down around 5 points or 0.05 per cent. 

3:21 PM

MARKET UPDATE

As many as 442 stocks including J&K Bank, Kalpataru Power, UCO Bank, Central Bank of India, Graphite India, HEG, KRBL, Quess Corp were locked in the upper circuit on the BSE 

3:15 PM

Domestic non-ferrous outlook negative as global metal prices crash: Icra

As per an Icra note, the price corrections in this period have been broadly in two phases, the first being in January when the news on the outbreak of Covid-19 in China came to light.

 

Subsequently prices stabilised in February, albeit at a lower level than December 2019, as the reported number of fresh cases in China declined. As the virus started spreading to the rest of the world in March, global macro-economic sentiments turned negative once again, and the second phase of price correction was witnessed. READ MORE

3:12 PM

MARKET CHECK | Top 5 gainers on the BSE at this hour

3:06 PM

Infosys to announce Q4 results today; here's what to expect

Infosys, according to analyst estimates, is expected to take a 1 per cent QoQ hit in its revenue growth in constant currency (CC) terms for the March quarter of FY20 (Q4FY20) due to disruptions caused by Covid-19 lockdown. The earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortisation (EBITDA) margin is expected to be stable, while the impact of lower billing and utilisation decline due to Covid-19 disruptions are expected to be offset by rupee depreciation, lower variable compensation payout, and lower travel costs, analysts say. READ MORE

2:58 PM

Devangshu Datta | Watch out for April SIP numbers

In January-March 2020, we saw the most volatile quarter in over a decade. Action across various mutual fund segments is worth noting.

 

Short-term debt funds are under great redemption pressure and the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) may have to create a bailout mechanism. READ MORE

2:58 PM

Infosys holds gains ahead of Q4 results

2:55 PM

Heatmap: S&P BSE Sensex gainers and losers at this hour

2:43 PM

MARKET UPDATE:: Sensex regains momentum

2:38 PM

BROKERAGE VIEW:: Axis Securities on Britannia Industries

TARGET PRICE: 3,114 | RECO: BUY

INVESTMENT RATIONALE:

Essential nature of products a saviour in near term: Nearly 80% of Britannia’s turnover comes from Biscuits which is an essential  category and thereby a lower impacted one owing to COVID-19 led nationwide lockdown. We note that during lockdown period  consumers have resorted to up-stocking of essential items including packaged foods like biscuits. While phase 1 of lockdown  witnessed serious supply chain, distribution and production challenges, in phase 2 of the lockdown these seem to have been eased  out leading to improved movement of goods and improved production levels from 25-30% seen in phase 1 of the lockdown

Market share gain opportunities to arise post COVID-19: Biscuits market growth had reported a slowdown pre COVID-19 pandemic.  Despite these challenging conditions before the pandemic outbreak, Britannia gained unprecedented market share reflecting its  strong in-market execution capabilities. We believe, post lifting of lockdown Britannia could see growing opportunities to gain market  share driven by 1) distribution expansion in Hindi belt, 2) premiumization trend and 3) acceleration in share gains prospects from  regional/local players who may witness drag on their business post COVID-19

Distribution penetration offers headroom for growth: Britannia has an overall distribution reach of 5.5 million outlets. Of these it  reaches directly to 21.7 lakh retail outlets and 21,000 dealers (3,000 dealers added in Q3FY20). With consistent focus on  distribution expansion, BRIT has narrowed the gap with the No.1 player. The gap with largest distributed brand is now just 0.8  million outlets which it expects to bridge soon and thereby become the largest player over the medium to long term

 

Outlook: Resilient and diverse product portfolio catering to essential needs and also offering value added products to its consumers  ensures Britannia is insulated to certain extent from coronavirus like pandemic. Further, pressure on cash flows for regional/local  players could open up opportunities for the company to gain market share and thereby narrow gap with No. 1 player. Its strong in-  market execution capabilities and focus on driving premiumization (though it has been pushed by another 1-2 quarters owing to  coronavirus pandemic) are key growth drivers from a long term perspective.

2:33 PM

NEWS ALERT | Tata Motors Group Q4 global wholesales including Jaguar Land Rover at 2.31 lakh units, down 35% YoY: BSE filing

-- Global passenger vehicles wholesales in Q4 at 1.59 lakh units, down 26% YoY

2:29 PM

NEWS ALERT | Bank of Baroda to consider capital raising via equity and/or debt for FY20 on April 24