Sensex slips 347 pts on profit-taking, Nifty holds 18,500; RIL, SBI dip 2%

CLOSING BELL ON MAY 31, 2023: Reliance, HDFC and HDFC Bank accounted for nearly 90 per cent of the day's loss on the BSE benchmark; Midcaps and Smallcaps bucked the trend.

Stock Market Highlights: The key benchmark indices wilted under selling pressure on Wednesday as traders preferred to take home some gains following the four-day rally ahead of the key vote on the US debt ceiling in the House of Representative later tonight.

The S&P BSE Sensex dropped to a low of 62,401, and eventually ended 347 points lower at 62,622, thus derailing the four-day rally. The NSE Nifty 50 hit a low of 18,484, and settled with a loss of 99 points at 18,534. 

Among the index heavyweights, Reliance, HDFC and HDFC Bank accounted for nearly 90 per cent of the day’s losses on the BSE Sensex. Axis Bank, NTPC, SBI, Tata Steel, UltraTech Cement and IndusInd Bank were the other prominent losers. 

On the positive front, Bharti Airtel soared nearly 5 per cent. Tech Mahindra, Asian Paints, Sun Pharma and Tata Motors gained 1 – 2 per cent each.

In the broader markets, the BSE Midcap and Smallcap indices bucked the trend and finished with gains in excess of 0.5 per cent each. However, the overall breadth was marginally negative.

 

4:00 PM

Tech View :: 'Momentum indicators suggest consolidation may have matured'

On the daily charts, we can observe that the Nifty has filled the gap area 18,500 – 18,580 formed on 29th May and held on to that support zone. We believe that the Nifty is in the process of retesting the breakout it provided last week from the zone of 18,000 – 18,400. 

The hourly momentum indicator has reached the equilibrium line indicating that the consolidation may have matured, and it can start a new cycle on the upside.

Overall, we continue to maintain our positive outlook on the index for a target of 18,800 from a short-term perspective. In terms of levels, 18,460 – 18,400 shall act as the crucial support zone while the hurdle zone is placed at 18,660 – 18,700.

Views by: Jatin Gedia, Technical Research Analyst, Sharekhan by BNP Paribas

3:58 PM

Comment :: 'Prudent to focus on position management'

Markets witnessed profit taking and shed over half a percent, tracking mixed cues.  After the initial downtick, the Nifty index traded with a negative bias for most of the session however a marginal rebound in the final hours trimmed some losses and it finally settled at 18,534.40 levels. Pressure in the energy, banking and metal pack was weighing on the sentiment while pharma and realty showed resilience and ended higher. Amid all, the broader indices showed noticeable strength and gained in the range of 0.4%-1%.

 

Global headwinds, especially from the US markets, are causing intermediate volatility however the positional up trend is still intact. Considering the scenario, it is prudent to focus on position management while maintaining a positive bias. 

Views by: Ajit Mishra, SVP - Technical Research, Religare Broking

3:57 PM

Comment :: 'Concerns about recession, potential interest rate hikes in western markets impacting domestic mkt'

As indicated by multiple economic data points, the Indian economy is presently experiencing a robust recovery, leading to an upward trend in domestic equity markets. However, the rally is being hindered at times due to negative signals from global peers, as observed today. Concerns about a recession and potential interest rate hikes in western markets are impacting the domestic market but it is nevertheless maintaining the outperformance.

Views by: Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Financial Services

3:53 PM

Currency :: Rupee ends nearly flat at 82.72/$ against Tuesday’s close of 82.71/$

3:51 PM

BSE Stats :: Declining stocks mildly outnumber advancing stocks

3:50 PM

Buzzing stock :: HDFC Life gains 1% post block deal

Abrdn was likely to sell 1.66 per cent equity stake (35.7 million shares) in HDFC Life Insurance company via block deal on May 31, 2023. With this stake sell, Abrdn will completely exit its stake in HDFC life insurance.

3:48 PM

Buzzing stock :: Sona BLW recoups morning losses post block deal

As per reports, promoters of Sona Comstar were likely to sell 3.25 per cent stake in the company at around Rs 500 per share via the block deal mechanism on stock exchanges today. Total deal size was pegged at Rs 960 crore. As on March 31, 2023, promoters held 33 per cent stake in the company.

3:45 PM

Buzzing stock :: Tega Industries freezes at 10% upper circuit on strong Q4 results

The company’s consolidated revenues grew 36.7 per cent YoY to Rs 396.4 crore. Absolute earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) came at Rs 102.8 crore, grew by 49.1 per cent YoY with EBITDA margins expanded by 217 bps YoY to 25.9 per cent.

3:42 PM

Buzzing stock :: Torrent Pharma hits record high, leaps over 7% post Q4

In Q4FY23, Torrent Pharma’s revenues grew 16.9 per cent year-on-year (YoY) to Rs 2,491 crore, mainly driven by growth in India, Germany and Brazil markets. Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (ebitda) increased 29.6 per cent YoY to Rs 727 Crore. Ebitda margins expanded by 286 bps to 29.2 per cent, due to change in revenue mix, higher revenues across geographies.

3:40 PM

Buzzing stock :: Jindal Saw soars 15% on solid Q4

The company reported strong March quarter (Q4FY23) earnings with a consolidated net profit more-than-doubling to Rs 294 crore on the back of healthy operational performance. It had posted profit of Rs 121.84 crore in the year-ago quarter and of Rs 143.23 crore in the previous quarter.

3:37 PM

Broader market check :: Mid, SmallCap indices gain up to 0.7%

3:36 PM

Sector check :: Financial, Metal stocks slide on Wednesday; Realty index rises the most

3:34 PM

Sensex Heatmap :: 11 of the 30 index stocks buck trend

3:33 PM

CLOSING BELL :: Nifty holds 18,500

3:32 PM

CLOSING BELL :: Sensex snaps 4 day losing streak, ends 347 pts down