MARKETS ON THURSDAY: Indices end lower, Nifty below 10,700; IT stocks fall

Benchmark indices declined on Thursday, dragged down by IT and pharma stocks

12:46 PM

BSE board likely to discuss charges against chairman Sethurathnam Ravi

The BSE plans to discuss the ongoing investigation against its chairman, Sethurathnam Ravi, named in the Central Bureau of Investigation’s (CBI’s) First Information Report in connection with the alleged ~6 billion IDBI-Aircel loan fraud. The board of directors of the exchange will meet on Friday to declare the March quarter results.

 

The CBI has registered a case against 38 people, including former Aircel promoter C Sivasankaran, his company’s executives, along with some of the public interest directors including Ravi, appointed by regulators. READ MORE

12:33 PM

After banks and equity players, DSP, Mirae join race for IDFC AMC

After banks and private equity players, two more entities — the DSP Group and Mirae Asset Global Investments (India) — have thrown their hats in the ring to acquire IDFC Asset Management Company (AMC).

 

The DSP Group is one of the oldest financial services firms in India and is headed by veteran investment banker Hemendra Kothari. Notably, DSP Group has also separately entered into talks to sell its 60 per cent stake in DSP BlackRock to its joint venture partner BlackRock. READ MORE

12:16 PM

HCC, Siemens, Mahanagar Gas, Suzlon Energy, Idea Cellular hit 52-week lows

Hindustan Construction Company (HCC), Mahanagar Gas, Suzlon Energy, Idea Cellular, Vakrangee and PC Jeweller among 21 stocks from the S&P BSE500 index hitting 52-week lows on the BSE.
 

Bharat Electronics, Chennai Petroleum Corporation Limited (CPCL), DCM Shriram, Allcargo Logistics, Siemens, Sintex Industries, Uco Bank and Syndicate Bank were among 22 stocks from the index too hit 52-week lows today. READ MORE

11:59 AM

Market Check

 

S&P BSE Sensex	35,058.92		-0.33%
Nifty 50	10,665.10		-0.49%
S&P BSE 200	4,664.81		-0.73%
Nifty 500	9,373.15		-0.76%
S&P BSE Mid-Cap	16,598.42		-1.28%
S&P BSE Small-Cap	17,978.77		-1.16%

11:40 AM

Top BSE500 losers

COMPANY	PRICE()	CHG()	CHG(%)	VOLUME
HIND.CONSTRUCT.	19.35	-4.00	-17.13	5072337
INTERGLOBE AVIAT	1183.20	-165.05	-12.24	522982
JET AIRWAYS	538.75	-54.15	-9.13	426495
SIEMENS	1032.00	-95.90	-8.50	67743
RADICO KHAITAN	389.00	-35.00	-8.25	400117

 

11:31 AM

HCL Technologies falls 12% in two days on weak FY19 revenue guidance

 

Shares of HCL Technologies have dipped 7% to Rs 924 per share on the BSE in early morning trade, extending their 5% fall on Wednesday as weak organic growth guidance raised concerns, according to analysts.

 

For the current financial year 2018-19 (FY19) HCL Tech has guided for constant currency (CC) revenue growth of 9.5%-11.5% (10.5%-12.5% in USD terms) and EBIT (earnings before interest and tax) margin guidance of 19.5%-20.5%. READ MORE

11:14 AM

Xiaomi files for world's biggest IPO since Alibaba, may raise over $10 bn

 

Xiaomi Corp. became the first major company to use Hong Kong’s new rules for going public, filing for what’s expected be the world’s biggest debut since 2014.

 

The Chinese smartphone maker is taking advantage of changes in the former British colony that mean companies with different share classes can now list in the city. While the filing didn’t say how much Xiaomi is looking to raise in the initial public offering, it’s expected to be at least $10 billion, people with knowledge of the matter have said, and could value the business as high as $100 billion.READ MORE

11:00 AM

Telecom: Where is the money?

The telecom sector continues to be a source of concern. Almost every company posted poor results. Airtel had net profits of Rs 830 million in the fourth quarter, a steep fall from the Rs 3.7 billion in net profits that it had posted a year ago. This was its worst quarter in 15 years.

 

Airtel saw a steep fall in revenues, both in India and in its overseas operations. Consolidated revenues fell by 10.5 per cent, while India-mobile revenues dropped by 20 per cent year-on-year. It did add 14 million Indian mobile customers during the quarter. The India business lost Rs 7.6 billion. READ MORE

10:48 AM

Airline stocks fall on weak InterGlobe Aviation results; IndiGo tanks 18%

Shares of airline companies - InterGlobe Aviation (IndiGo), Jet Airways and SpiceJet – have tanked up to 18% after the IndiGo reported weak set of numbers for the quarter ended March 2018 (Q4FY18).

 

IndiGo plunged 18% to Rs 1,111 on the BSE after the company reported a sharp 73% decline in net profit to Rs 1.17 billion for the March quarter (Q4FY18), due to higher fuel costs and adverse forex exchange positions. The country’s largest airline had profit of Rs 4.4 billion in year ago quarter. READ MORE

IndiGo.

10:33 AM

Rising economic tide doesn't lift all boats, Indian market veteran cautions

Sustained 7 per cent-plus economic growth may sound like a great recipe for stock-market returns, but investors looking at a country like India still need to do their homework.

 

A quick look at the automobile industry shows why. While India’s vehicle production has climbed about 25-fold over the past quarter century, the two major players in the market as of the mid-1990s -- Hindustan Motors Ltd. and Premier Ltd. -- barely register today. It’s a cautionary tale that a rising economic tide doesn’t necessarily lift all boats, highlighted by local-market veteran Prateek Agrawal. READ MORE

10:15 AM

Biocon dips 4% on seven USFDA observations for Bengaluru drug facility

Shares of Biocon have dipped 4% to Rs 634 per share on the BSE in early morning trade on Thursday after the biotechnology major on Wednesday said that US health regulator has made seven observations after inspection of its sterile drug product manufacturing facility in Bengaluru this week. READ MORE

10:00 AM

Market Check

 

S&P BSE Sensex	35,134.59		-0.12%
Nifty 50	10,694.45		-0.22%
S&P BSE 200	4,685.02		-0.30%
Nifty 500	9,409.40		-0.37%
S&P BSE Mid-Cap	16,725.14		-0.53%
S&P BSE Small-Cap	18,077.15		-0.62%

9:45 AM

Multi-year high margins lend comfort to Dabur; demand and sales to rise

The Dabur stock recorded a 52-week high at Rs 382.3 in Wednesday's trade, after the company posted its highest operating profit margin of 23.9 per cent, up 206 basis points (bps) year-on-year (y-o-y), in the March quarter. This was led by cost management and an improved product mix.

 

Operating expenses (excluding finance costs and depreciation) as a proportion of sales fell to 76 per cent, among its lowest; it was 78 per cent in the year-ago quarter. A fall in cost of raw material consumption propelled the gross margin, which expanded by 167 bps to 50.7 per cent. The management foresees a stable gross margin in 2018-19. It believes price hikes, if required, will help neutralise any inflationary pressure. READ MORE

9:29 AM

IndiGo Q4 profit plunges 73% on higher expenses at Rs 1.18 billion; stock down 10%

9:18 AM

Sectoral Trend