A bonus announcement of 1:1 by Bharat Petroleum Corporation (BPCL) last week has raised hope that peer Hindustan Petroleum Corporation (HPCL) will soon issue a bonus. HPCL had issued a 1:2 bonus way back in September 1999. As HPCL's 2015-16 earnings per share was Rs 145, more than BPCL's Rs 110, market players say it could be a good opportunity for the company to reward its shareholders.
Joydeep Ghosh
Bonanza for traders of L&T call options
A sudden spike in the Larsen & Toubro (L&T) call option seems to have led to a windfall for investors. On Wednesday, L&T call options at a strike price of Rs 1,400 closed at Rs 0.40. After the engineering major announced its results, the price of the option shot up to Rs 72. A trader who had purchased these options worth Rs 10,000 on Wednesday would have made Rs 18 lakh in only one day.
Joydeep Ghosh
Sebi expects more mutual fund scheme mergers
The Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi), which has been pushing mutual fund houses to merge similar schemes, has met with limited success due to the tax that had to be paid for these. But, with the Union Budget waiving off the tax on merging of schemes, things have become much simpler. In a meeting with the media, Sebi Chairman U K Sinha said he expects many more schemes to merge in the coming months. For investors, it means they need to be nimble and ready to move in or out, depending on their scheme's performance and objectives.
Rajesh Bhayani
