Key equity benchmarks reversed gains and slipped into the red in mid-morning trade. At 11:24 IST, the S&P BSE Sensex, was down 184.39 points or 0.44% at 41,275.40. The Nifty 50 index lost 50.05 points or 0.41% at 12,124.60.
In the wider market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index was down 0.25% while the S&P BSE Small-Cap index gained 0.02%.
The market breadth was negative. On the BSE, 890 shares rose and 1185 shares fell. A total of 120 shares were unchanged. In Nifty 50 index, 21 stocks advanced while 29 stocks declined.
Q3 earnings:
BPCL rose 2.93%. On a consolidated basis, BPCL's net profit surged 239.47% to Rs 1776.35 crore on 5.95% decline in net sales to Rs 74959.18 crore in Q3 December 2019 (Q3 FY20) over Q3 December 2018 (Q3 FY19). Profit before tax (PBT) surged 138.78% to Rs 2,434.01 crore year-on-year (YoY). Total tax expense rose 19.29% to Rs 382.58 crore during the period under review.
On a standalone basis, BPCL's net profit surged 154.60% to Rs 1,260.63 crore on 5.64% decline in net sales to Rs 74,732.79 crore in Q3 FY20 over Q3 FY19. PBT surged 193.97% to Rs 1,733.01 crore YoY. Total tax expense surged 400.56% to Rs 472.38 crore during the period under review.
The company said its average gross refining margin (GRM) during nine months ended 31 December 2019 stood at $3.15 per barrel compared with $5.25 per barrel in the corresponding period of the previous year.
BPCL has accounted compensation towards sharing of under-recoveries on sale of sensitive petroleum products of Rs 233.77 crore by way of subsidy from Government of India during nine months ended 31 December 2019 compared with Rs 762.55 crore in the corresponding period of the previous year.
Lux Industries rose 1.35% to Rs 1595.80. Consolidated net profit rose 39.9% to Rs 33.36 crore on a 7.5% increase in net sales to Rs 302.19 crore in Q3 December 2019 over Q3 December 2018. Profit before tax in the December quarter stood at Rs 45.52 crore, up by 31.5% from Rs 45.52 crore reported in Q3 FY19.
Page Industries slumped 5.62% to Rs 22205.50. Standalone net profit slipped 14.60% to Rs 87.01 crore in Q3 December 2019 (Q3 FY20) as against Rs 101.89 crore reported in Q3 December 2018 (Q3 FY19). Revenue from operations jumped 7.51% year-on-year (Y-o-Y) to Rs 793.79 crore in Q3 FY20. The Q3 earnings were announced after market hours yesterday, 13 February 2020. A temporary dip in PAT is entirely due to enhanced investments in sales and marketing, people and technology, which would drive sustainable growth in the years to come, the company said. EBITDA dropped 16.5% to Rs 135.30 crore in Q3 FY20 from Rs 162.10 crore in Q3 FY19. EBITDA margin stood at 17% in Q3 FY20 as against 22% in Q3 FY19.
Cosmo Films surged 10.66% to Rs 332.60. Consolidated net profit jumped 171.1% to Rs 36.11 crore on a 4% rise in net sales to Rs 579.87 crore in Q3 December 2019 over Q3 December 2018. Profit before tax in the December quarter stood at Rs 51.89 crore, up by 369.2% from Rs 11.06 crore reported in Q3 FY19.
Stocks in Spotlight:
Mahindra & Mahindra fell 1.17% to Rs 527. The automaker clarified that the Board of SsangYong Motor has approved a 3 years business plan which will lead to the profitability of the company in the year 2022. This plan requires outside funding of $380 - 425 million over a period of three years. About half of this amount is to repay the existing loan and the remaining is to augment the capex required for new product development.
Indian Toners & Developers jumped 7.77% to Rs 91.50. As per reports, The government may impose anti-dumping duty on the imports of black toner powder, used printers and photocopiers, from China, Malaysia and Taiwan to guard domestic players from cheap shipments. The commerce ministry's investigation arm Directorate General of Trade Remedies (DGTR) has initiated a probe into an alleged dumping of 'Black Toner in powder form' from these three countries following a complaint filed by Indian Toners and Developers Ltd and Pure Toners and Developers, the reports added.
Global Markets:
Most Asian stocks were trading lower on Friday as investors turned cautious following a surge in cases of a new virus in China.
China is set to halve tariff rates on certain U.S. products worth about $75 billion with effect later on Friday, as previously announced by Beijing in early February. Retaliatory tariffs on some U.S. goods will be cut from 10% to 5%, and from 5% to 2.5% on others, according to a statement from China's Ministry of Finance earlier this month. The adjustments will take effect from 14 February.
Investors continue to watch for developments on the coronavirus outbreak following Thursday's spike in the number of cases reported after authorities in Hubei introduced a new method for tabulating case totals. On Friday, the province reported an additional 116 deaths and 4,823 new confirmed cases as of the end of Feb. 13.
In US, stock indices declined on Thursday after a change in the methodology used by China resulted in a sharp rise in COVID-19 cases and deaths. The World Health Organization said Thursday that the total deaths from the outbreak stood at 1,369, while the total number of confirmed cases rose to 60,329. Traders are still trying to gauge the outbreak's effect on the economy.
Meanwhile, the US Fed said it would shrink repo operations starting with Friday's overnight offering. The Fed has been conducting repo offerings and Treasury-bill purchases in a bid to keep control of short-term interest rates and bolster bank reserves. The efforts had calmed markets since a September spike. Treasuries trimmed their gains for the day.
On the data front, US first-time claims for unemployment benefits inched up by less than expected in the week ended February 8th, according to a report released by the Labor Department on Thursday.
US consumer price index inched up by 0.1% in January after rising by 0.2% in December, with higher prices for food and shelter offsetting a steep drop in gasoline prices, the Labor Department reported on Thursday. The uptick in consumer prices was primarily due to an increase in shelter costs, which climbed by 0.4% in January.
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