As per the provisional closing data, the barometer index, S&P BSE Sensex dropped 537.22 points or 0.94% at 56,819.15. The Nifty 50 index fell 162.6 points or 0.95% at 17,038.30.
Selling pressure was broad based. The S&P BSE Mid-Cap index lost 0.88% while the S&P BSE Small-Cap index declined 0.61%.
The market breadth, indicating the overall health of the market, was weak. On the BSE, 1175 shares rose while 2,195 shares fell. A total of 115 shares were unchanged.
Index heavyweight, Reliance Industries (RIL) (up 0.08%) hit fresh record high of Rs 2,827.10 in intraday today. The company hit a market capitalization of Rs 19 lakh crore.
RIL and Abu Dhabi Chemicals Derivatives Company RSC (TA'ZIZ) have signed the formal shareholder agreement for the TA'ZIZ Ethylene Dichloride (EDC) and Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC) project. RIL is a strategic partner with Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) and ADQ, an Abu Dhabi-based investment and holding company, in TA'ZIZ EDC & PVC, a world-scale chemicals development at the TA'ZIZ Industrial Chemicals Zone in Ruwais. The TA'ZIZ EDC & PVC joint venture will construct and operate a Chlor-Alkali, EDC and PVC production facility, with a total investment of over $2 billion (AED 7.34 billion).
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LIC IPO Update:
The initial public offering of Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) will open on 4 May 2022 and will close on 9 May 2022. The price band has been set at Rs 902 to Rs 949, with a discount of Rs 60 for LIC policyholders. For retail investors and eligible employees, the discount will be of Rs 45 a share.
COVID-19 Update:
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, while interacting with the chief ministers of several states on Wednesday, warned that the Covid challenge has not yet been surpassed. Despite managing the Covid crisis well as compared to other countries, we can see an uptick in cases in states now. We have to stay alert, Modi said. The review meeting was attended by several chief ministers including West Bengal's Mamata Banerjee, Chhattisgarh's Bhupesh Baghel and Punjab's Bhagwant Mann.
India reported 2,927 new coronavirus cases, up from the previous day's 2,483 as of 8 A.M. on Wednesday, according to the Union Health Ministry. The active cases in India climbed to 16,279 from 15,636. The country also reported 32 deaths in the last 24 hours.
The Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) on Tuesday granted emergency use authorisation to Bharat Biotech's Covaxin for the age group 6-12 years and Corbevax for the age group 5-12 years. Zydus Cadila's two-dose COVID-19 vaccine, meanwhile, has been approved for the 12 years and above population.
Earnings Impact:
Bajaj Finance declined 7.4%. The NBFC reported a 80% rise in consolidated net profit to Rs 2420 crore on a 26% rise in total income to Rs 8630 crore in Q4 FY22 over Q4 FY21. Net interest income grew by 32% to Rs 5,672 crore in Q4 FY22 from Rs 4,287 crore in Q4 FY21. Loan losses and provisions for Q4 FY22 was Rs 664 crore as against Rs 1,201 crore in Q4 FY21.
KPIT Technologies surged 12% after the company's consolidated net profit rose 12.66% to Rs 78.87 crore on 4.72% increase in revenues to Rs 651.76 crore in Q4 March 2022 over Q3 December 2021. On a consolidated basis, profit before tax (PBT) rose 11.05% quarter-on-quarter (QoQ) to Rs 97.21 crore in Q4 FY22. EBITDA rose 5.58% to Rs 121.39 crore during the period under review. EBITDA margin stood at 18.6% in Q4 FY22 as against 18.5% in Q3 FY22 and 17.2% in Q4 FY21. On a year-on-year (YoY) basis, the software development company's net profit rose 50.37% and net sales rose 20.62% in Q4 FY22. During the quarter, Constant Currency (CC) revenue growth was 21% Y-o-Y and 5.2% Q-o-Q. In Dollar terms, revenue growth was 17% Y-o-Y and 4.1% Q-o-Q. Total contract value (TCV) of total deals won during the quarter was $125 million.
AU Small Finance Bank fell 3.67%. The bank reported a net profit of Rs 346 crore in Q4 FY22 as against a net profit of Rs 169 crore in Q4 FY21. Net interest income (NII) in Q4 FY22 rose by 43% year on year to Rs 937 crore as compared with the same period last year. Net interest margin (NIM) was at 6.3% in Q4 FY22 as against 5.7% in Q4 FY21. The bank's gross non-performing assets (NPAs) stood at Rs 924 crore as on 31 March 2021 as against Rs 1,058 crore as on 31 December 2021 and Rs 1,503 crore as on 31 March 2020.
Aditya Birla Sun Life AMC fell 2.02%. The asset management company reported a 1.1% rise in consolidated net profit to Rs 158.5 crore on a 3% increase in revenue from operations to Rs 323.5 crore in in Q4 FY22 over Q4 FY21. Profit before tax in Q4 FY22 stood at Rs 209.3 crore, up by 1% from Rs 207.7 crore recorded in Q4 FY21.
Nippon Life India Asset Management fell 2.6%. The asset management company reported a 4.8% rise in consolidated net profit to Rs 174.84 crore on a 2.9% increase in total income to Rs 372.44 crore in Q4 FY22 over Q4 FY21. As on 31 March 2022, NAM India's assets under management were at Rs 3,45,604 crore ($46.7 billion) as against Rs 3,55,053 crore ($48 billion) as on 31 March 2021. For the quarter ended 31 March 2022, NIMF's overall AUM market share rose to 7.38%, registering an increase of 26 basis points as compared with the quarter ended 31 March 2021.
UTI Asset Management Company (AMC) dropped 7.29% to Rs 860.5 after the asset management company's consolidated net profit tumbled 59.7% to Rs 53.99 crore in Q4 FY22 over Q4 FY21. The company's total income rose 5.4% to Rs 304.98 crore in Q4 FY22 over Q4 FY21. The core profit after tax for the fourth quarter (excluding M2M gains, income from sale of investments, and other non-operating income) stood Rs 48 crore, falling 44% as compared to the corresponding quarter of FY21
Mahindra Logistics jumped 7.83% to Rs 510. The third-party logistics provider's consolidated net profit declined 2.78% to Rs 12.23 crore on 10.13% rise in net sales to Rs 1072.68 crore in Q4 March 2022 over Q4 March 2021. The company's profit before tax (PBT) fell 13.37% to Rs 14 crore as against Rs 16 crore last year. EBITDA rose 19.6% to Rs 61 crore compared with Rs 51 crore last year. During the quarter, the company's supply chain segment grew at 11% YoY driven by continuing growth in non-auto end markets including durables, FMCG and E-Commerce.
VST Industries fell 0.23%. The company reported a 19.7% increase in net profit to Rs 87.19 crore on an 8.7% rise in net sales to Rs 302.07 crore in Q4 FY22 over Q4 FY21. The company said it managed to withstand the inflationary pressure in the Q4 and ended the financial year 2022 with growth in the overall turnover as well profit. VST further added, While the macroeconomic environment has been challenging where inflation has gone up considerably, better operational efficiencies helped company achieve an EBIT margin of 25% in the FY22.
Syngene International fell 2.6%. The company's consolidated net profit fell 7.97% to Rs 147.80 crore on a 15.10% rise in revenue from operations to Rs 758.10 crore in Q4 FY22 over Q4 FY21. Consolidated profit before tax (PBT) slipped 6.81% to Rs 179.10 crore in Q4 March 2022 as against Rs 192.20 crore in Q4 March 2021. The total expenses increased by 14.21% to Rs 593.70 crore in Q4 March 2022 as compared to Rs 519.80 crore in Q4 March 2021.
United Breweries (UBL) fell 1.67%. The beer manufacturer reported a 68.2% rise in consolidated net profit to Rs 163.40 crore on a 10.7% increase in net sales to Rs 1,709.17 crore in Q4 FY22 over Q4 FY21. Total expenditure during the quarter rose by 7.7% year on year to Rs 1,447.7 crore. Profit before tax in Q4 FY22 stood at Rs 218.78 crore, up by 50.7% from Rs 145.21 crore in Q4 FY21. UBL said that the fourth quarter witnessed robust year on year and sequential growth of 7% and 14% respectively. The growth was mixed during the quarter with January being muted due to the impact of the Omicron COVID variant, while March showed a promising start of the peak season.
Global Markets:
The Dow Futures were up 324 points, indicating a positive start in the U.S. market today.
European markets advanced while Asian markets ended mixed on Wednesday. China's industrial profits rose 8.5% year-on-year in the January-March period, official data showed.
U.S. stocks fell sharply on Tuesday with shares selling off into the close, as investors dumped equities on fears of an economic slowdown. Worries about the global economy loomed. Investors are worried about a Covid surge in China. Regarding the war in Ukraine, a top Russian official said the threat of nuclear war is real. Plus, high inflation in the U.S. is denting demand for goods from houses to sneakers.
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