Benchmark indices turned green late on Monday morning as gains in L&T, ITC, and Axis Bank were pared by a sharp decline of 10% in NTPC.
At 11:30 hours, the 30-share Sensex was up 20 points at 20,720, while the Nifty-50 had increased by 2 points at 6,157.
Broader markets outpeformed the benchmark, with the BSE Mid-cap and Small-cap increasing by 0.35% each, compared to Sensex's small gain of 0.1%.
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Breadth of the market was positive, with 1096 advances, 917 declines, and 119 scrips remaining unchanged.
Sectors and Stocks
Amongst the various sectors, the S&P BSE Capital Goods index was leading the list of gainers, increasing by 1.9%. Healthcare, Auto, and Realty also gained modestly by 0.2-1.0% each.
Power index declined by 1.35% as NTPC crashed by more than 10% to Rs. 119. Tata Power, on the other hand, made significant gains of 5% to Rs. 82.80. Consumer Durables, IT, and Metals also showed declines of 0.2-0.8% each.
While L&T, Axis Bank, and BHEL increased by more than 2% each, TCS was down by 1.4%. Tata Steel, HDFC, and HDFC Bank also declined by 0.5-1% each.
Amongst other shares, DCM Shriram has surged almost 6% to Rs 71.75 after its board approved a buyback of equity shares at a maximum price of Rs 90 per share from the open market. The buyback price is at a premium of 32% over Friday’s closing price of Rs 68 on the NSE.
Credit Analysis and Research (CARE) has plunged nearly 6% to Rs 805 after the IDBI rejected the bids received from the potential investors as they were not found 'acceptable'. It had reached an intra-day low of Rs. 762 earlier.
CEAT Ltd has declined by nearly 4.6% to Rs 266 levels on the NSE, after a major fire broke out at its tyre manufacturing unit in Nahur, near the north-eastern suburb of Bhandup in Mumbai on Sunday. However, the exact details of damage are unknown.
Shares of Gujarat Pipavav were up over 1% at Rs 71.30 after the company said it has received approval from the Ministry of Environment & Forests (MoEF) for its expansion plan.