Shares end with modest gains

Key barometers ended with modest gains after a fairly range bound session on Wednesday. The Nifty managed to close above the 12,100 mark. Recovery in global stock markets boosted sentiment. However, gains were capped ahead of January F&O expiry on Thursday and the Union Budget on Saturday.

The barometer BSE S&P Sensex rose 241.63 points or 0.59% to 41,208.49, as per the provisional closing data. The Nifty 50 index added 73.70 points or 0.61% to 12,129.50, as per the provisional closing data.

Buying was broad based. In the broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index rose 0.46% while the S&P BSE Small-Cap index gained 0.11%.

 

The market breadth favored the sellers. On the BSE, 1286 shares rose and 1224 shares fell. A total of 169 shares were unchanged. In Nifty 50 index, 35 stocks advanced while 15 stocks declined.

Buzzing Index:

The Nifty FMCG index rose 1.35% to 31,446.35, outperforming other sectoral indices on the NSE.

Nestle India (up 3.03%), ITC (up 2.71%), Marico (up 2.84%), Britannia Industires (up 1.15%), Procter & Gamble Hygiene & Health Care (up 1.02%), Godrej Consumer Products (up 0.86%), GlaxoSmithkline Consumer Healthcare (up 0.82%), Tata Global Beverages (up 0.70%) and Hindustan Unilever (up 0.51%) edged higher.

Jyothy Laboratories (down 2.48%), Dabur India (up 0.79%), and Bajaj Consumer Care (down 0.7%) and Colgate Palmolive (India) (down 0.21%) edged lower.

Stocks in Spotlight:

Bajaj Finance surged 5.46% to Rs 4443.20. On consolidated basis, net profit jumped 52% to Rs 1614 crore in Q3 December 2019 as against Rs 1060 crore reported in Q3 December 2018. The company reported that this is the highest ever quarterly consolidated net profit ever posted by the NBFC. Consolidated revenue from operations stood at Rs 7011.05 in Q3 2019 as compared to Rs 4985.39 crore reported in Q3 2018, registering a rise of 40.63%. Net interest income for Q3FY20 was up by 42% to Rs 4,537 crore from Rs 3,206 crore registered in Q3FY19.

The NBFC major reported a 35% rise in consolidated Asset under Management (AUM) to Rs 1,45,092 crore as of 31 December 2019 from Rs 1,07,507 crore posted on 31 December 2018. On downside, Loan losses and provisions (expected credit loss) for Q3FY20 soared 84.263% to Rs 831 crore as against Rs 451 crore posted in Q3FY19. During the quarter, the Company has made an accelerated provision of Rs 85 crore in its loan against securities portfolio.

Escorts jumped 3.42% to Rs 752.40. On a consolidated basis, Escorts reported 11.19% rise in net profit to Rs 154.79 crore in Q3 December 2019 as against Rs 139.21 crore reported in Q3 December 2018. Consolidated revenue from operations declined 1.27% to Rs 1650.22 crore in Q3 2019.

The auto maker's consolidated Profit before tax (PBT) for Q3 December 2019 (Q3 FY20) stood at Rs 211.12 crore, up by 1.1% against Rs 208.82 crore reported in Q3 December 2018 (Q3 FY19). Tax expenses fell 19.08% to Rs 56.33 crore in Q3FY20 from Rs 69.61 crore reported in Q3 FY19.

Godfrey Phillips India (GPI) slumped 9.35% to Rs 1244.40, extending yesterday's 4.59% slide. Jupiter Asset Management (Jupiter), which holds 9.37% in Godfrey Phillips India (GPI), on 7 January 2020, raised concerns over the company's corporate governance standards. Jupiter said that it has previously raised the "broader question of the group's corporate governance" with the company. "It is clear to us that a review of the group's governance would be beneficial, Jupiter said.

GPI on Tuesday clarified that its promoter KK Modi-owned Modi Enterprises has no plan to sell its stake in the cigarette maker. The company also clarified that it is neither engaged nor privy to any such discussions on rumored potential transaction by its promoters". The clarification came after Lalit Modi, son of late industrialist KK Modi, said on Twitter that all assets of the group were up for sale. "Just to set the record straight Yes, all assets of the KK Modi group are going on sale. I mean all. The other three trustees wanted to continue running the business but I felt post my father passing away - the value will deplete. I voted for sale," Modi tweeted late on 27 January. GPI also clarified that it received a clarification from its "significant promoter" that there has been no decision to put the company's assets on sale.

Infosys rose 1.53% to Rs 789.80. The IT major said that it divested its stake in Denmark-based UNSILO A/S for approximately $0.8 million on 28 January 2020. In November 2016, Infosys had announced an investment of 14,920,000 Danish Krone from its Innovation Fund in UNSILO, an artificial intelligence startup focused on advanced text analysis. The announcement was made after trading hours yesterday, 28 January 2020.

Dr Reddy's Laboratories fell 1.24% to Rs 3149.35 after the US drug regulator issued five observations on the company's Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients (APIs) plant at Srikakulam, Andhra Pradesh.

VA Tech WABAG gained 4.27% to Rs 223.50 after the company announced secured multiple orders worth over Rs 760 crore in India, Switzerland and Singapore.

Cummins India rose 1.55% to Rs 597.85 after consolidated net profit rose 1.2% to Rs 199.88 crore on 2.9% decline in net sales to Rs 1431.54 crore in Q3 December 2019 over Q3 December 2018. Profit before tax (PBT) declined 9.8% to Rs 258.05 crore in Q3 December 2019 from Rs 285.98 crore in Q3 December 2018. Total tax expenses for the December quarter stood at Rs 58.17 crore, down by 34.25% from Rs 88.48 crore in same period last year.

Tata Coffee jumped 4.59 % to Rs 103.65. The coffee major reported a 121.7% jump in consolidated net profit to Rs 24.9 crore in Q3 2019 from net profit of Rs 11.23 crore in the year ago period. Net sales rose 7.7% to Rs 501.42 crore year on year (YoY).

Global Markets:

European shares were trading higher while most Asian stocks ended higher, brushing off coronavirus concerns.

Chinese health officials said the death toll has risen to 132 with the number of confirmed coronavirus cases in China now standing at 5,974, topping the number of SARS cases previously. Between 1 November 2002, and 31 July 2003, China had 5,327 SARS cases, according to the World Health Organization.

Chinese President Xi Jinping called on the country to strengthen its resolve on Tuesday, saying I believe that as long as we strengthen our confidence, help each other, adopt scientific prevention and containment measures, and persist in precise policies, we will definitely win the battle against the outbreak.

Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam announced a package of measures aimed at limiting the Asian financial hub's connections to mainland China. Flights and high speed train journeys between Hong Kong and the Chinese city of Wuhan will be halted, and annual official Lunar New Year celebrations for the city have been scrapped.

In US, shares recovered some ground on Tuesday, after worries about the impact of China's coronavirus outbreak on global economic growth sparked the biggest one-day selloff since early October on Monday.

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