MARKET WRAP: Sensex ends 255 pts higher; financial, metal stocks advance

All that happened in the markets today

2:04 PM

Rupee Closing

Rupee closes higher at 73.34 per US dollar vs Thursday's close of 73.38/$

2:02 PM

UPDATE | India Vix down over 1% to 21.76 levels

1:54 PM

European indices start strong

1:48 PM

BROKERAGE VIEW :: ICICI Securities on Cyient

CMP: Rs 367 | Target price: Rs 530 | Reco: Buy

>> Cyient’s reported EBIT margin for Q2FY21 was 200bps ahead of our estimate led by strong margin expansion in both services (540bps QoQ) and DLM (-930bps

QoQ). Operational improvements and lower direct costs were the key margin tailwinds. Revenues werein line with our estimates. While A&D (-11.5% QoQ in USD terms, Services) continued to struggle, communications (+7.7% QoQ, USD) and transportation (+21.6% QoQ, USD) saved the day. For FY21, the company now expects low double-digit revenue decline. Margins are expected to be flat YoY.

>> Even as A&D (31.6% of revenues) should drag performance over the next 12-18 months, we expect its impact to be more than offset by strong growth acceleration in other verticals like communications (24% of revenues). Some of the impending structural changes in the organisation should augur well for improvement in both growth and profitability. Large room for margin expansion and undemanding valuations (10.5x FY22E EPS) are the key rationale behind our BUY rating.

1:41 PM

BROKERAGE VIEW :: ICICI Securities on Mindtree

CMP: Rs 1,425 | Target price: Rs 1,810 | Reco: Buy

>> While revenue in this quarter is behind estimates, margin expansion and outlook surprised the street. Mindtree expects to keep its margins stable despite impending wage hikes, which would be an impressive achievement. We reckon steady state EBIT/PAT margins of 17.5%/14.3% by FY23E, by when cost structure should converge with that of LTI. (1) Increasing share of FPP, (2) focus on tail account rationalisation and (3) CMT-led growth should drive further margin expansion. Slight decline in top account (1% QoQ, USD) in Q2FY21 was understandable given the pandemic-led spike in Q1FY21.

>> Despite the relatively tepid deal wins (USD 303mn vs 391mn, in Q1FY21) and seasonality, growth outlook for H2FY21 remained strong. Multiples are undemanding (19x FY22E EPS) on our estimates as we already factor in the potential positive surprise. Maintain BUY with an unchanged target price of Rs 1,810.

1:35 PM

BROKERAGE VIEW :: Anand Rathi on UltraTech Cements

CMP: Rs 4,374 | Target price: Rs 5,210 | Reco: Buy

>> It has a consolidated capacity of 116.75 Million Tonnes Per Annum (MTPA) of grey cement, 0.68 MTPA of white cement & 0.85 MTPA of wall care putty. The company has 100+ RMC plants in 39 cities.

>> The century cement division reported EBITDA per ton > Rs.900/ton and turned PBT accretive in the 3rd quarter of acquisition and achieved 70% capacity utilization. The division is expected to further benefit from brand transition & operational synergies.

>> We are positive on Ultratech due to its strong business model, high operating margins, improving balance sheet, growing retail market share and potential for further integration & synergy benefits from its mergers & acquisitions. We initiate our coverage on the company with a BUY rating and a target price of ₹ 5,210 per share.

1:26 PM

Tata Steel up nearly 4%

1:25 PM

Nifty IT index slips in the red

1:17 PM

Top gainers on the BSE at this hour

1:09 PM

Cyient gains 5% as Q2 consolidated Ebit margin grows 586 bps QoQ to 11%

Shares of Cyient were up 5 per cent to Rs 383 on the BSE on Friday after the company reported 586 basis points (bps) expansion in consolidated EBIT (earnings before interest tax) margin at 11.0 per cent in September quarter (Q2FY21) on a sequential basis. The improvement in margins was led by higher utilisation, lower subcontracting cost, and lower restructuring cost. Consolidated revenue grew 1.3 per cent quarter-on-quarter (QoQ) in constant currency terms. READ MORE  

1:09 PM

NEWS ALERT :: European aviation regulator declares Boeing 737 Max safe to fly

Alert: B737 Max were grounded in 2018 after 2 fatal accidents

SpiceJet has maximum B737 Max in its fleet

1:05 PM

Sept Quarter Result | Federal Bank reports profit of Rs 308 cr vs Rs 417 cr YoY

>> Gross NPA at 2.84% vs 2.96% QoQ

>> NNPA at 0.99% vs 1.22% QoQ

>> Provisions at Rs 592 cr vs Rs 252 cr

1:01 PM

BPCL to cut dependence on Middle East LPG, seek bids from global suppliers

Bharat Petroleum Corp. is seeking bids from global suppliers for a fifth of its typical LPG needs in 2021, according to a tender seen by Bloomberg. Bidding is still open to Middle East producers, which already provide BPCL with the majority of its contracted needs. India’s second-biggest fuel retailer made an attempt to broaden its sources of supply earlier this year but the tender wasn’t awarded due to a lack of attractive offers, said traders. READ MORE

12:59 PM

Top gainers on BSE at this hour

COMPANY	PRICE(rs)	CHG(%)
IDBI BANK	36.60	8.93
IFB INDUSTRIES	701.00	7.25
SUNTECK REALTY	269.00	6.85
AMBER ENTERP.	2132.50	6.80
GUJ PIPAVAV PORT	88.65	6.04

12:48 PM

Result Tomorrow :: Analysts see sub-20% growth in HDFC Bank's profit

Earlier this month, HDFC Bank said its loan book had expanded 16 per cent on a yearly basis to Rs 10.37 trillion as on September 30, 2020, compared to Rs 8.97 trillion in the year-ago period. Deposits, meanwhile, stood at Rs 12.29 trillion at the end of September, 2020 as against Rs 10.21 trillion in the year-ago period, it said. READ MORE