Sensex, Nifty hits new life high, rising for 5th day; VIX slides 2.41%

The domestic equity benchmarks ended with decent gains after a volatile session on Thursday, rising for the fifth day in a row. The Nifty settled above the 25,000 level. Oil & gas, healthcare and FMCG shares advanced while media, realty and PSU bank shares declined.

As per provisional closing data, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, was up 126.21 points or 0.15% to 81,867.55. The Nifty 50 index rose 59.75 points or 0.24% to 25,010.90.

The Sensex and Nifty clocked an all-time high of 82,129.49 and 25,078.30, respectively in early trade.

The broader market underperformed the frontline indices. The S&P BSE Mid-Cap index fell 0.80% and the S&P BSE Small-Cap index declined 0.70%. The S&P BSE Mid-Cap index hit an all-time high at 48,840.75.

 

The market breadth was weak. On the BSE, 1,579 shares rose and 2,383 shares fell. A total of 86 shares were unchanged.

The NSE's India VIX, a gauge of the market's expectation of volatility over the near term, declined 2.41% to 12.93.

Economy:

India's manufacturing sector continued to post impressive growth in July, despite slightly softer increases in new orders and output. Key positive developments seen in the latest results included one of the fastest expansions in international sales for over 13 years and another robust round of job creation. That said, buoyant demand also exerted pressure on prices.

Input costs rose at one of the quickest rates in nearly two years, which contributed to the steepest increase in selling prices since October 2013. At 58.1% in July, the seasonally adjusted HSBC India Manufacturing Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) was little changed from 58.3% in June and indicated a substantial improvement in the health of the sector. The latest reading was above the series long-run average and one of the highest seen in recent years.

IPO Update:

The initial public offer (IPO) of Ceigall India received 1,01,32,672 bids for shares as against 2,23,13,663 shares on offer, according to stock exchange data at 15:45 IST on Thursday (01 August 2024). The issue was subscribed 0.45 times.

The issue opened for bidding on Thursday (1 August 2024) and it will close on Monday (5 August 2024). The price band of the IPO is fixed between Rs 380 to Rs 401 per share. An investor can bid for a minimum of 37 equity shares and in multiples thereof.

The initial public offer (IPO) of Akums Drugs and Pharmaceuticals received 92,44,16,064 bids for shares as against 1,51,62,239 shares on offer, according to stock exchange data at 15:45 IST on Thursday (1 August 2024). The issue was subscribed 60.97 times.

The issue opened for bidding on Tuesday (30 July 2024) and it will close on Thursday (1 August 2024). The price band of the IPO is fixed between Rs 646 to Rs 679 per share. An investor can bid for a minimum of 22 equity shares and in multiples thereof.

Buzzing Index:

The Nifty Media index fell 1.89% to 2,109.15. The index surged 9.77% in seven consecutive trading sessions.

Network 18 Media & Investments (down 4.56%), Zee Entertainment Enterprises (down 4.34%), Hathway Cable & Datacom (down 2.86%), Saregama India (down 2.43%), TV18 Broadcast (down 2.22%), Sun TV Network (down 1.76%), PVR Inox (down 0.64%) and Dish TV India (down 0.12%) declined.

On the other hand, Nazara Technologies (up 5.06%) and Tips Industries (up 1.21%) edged higher.

July Auto Sales Impact:

Mahindra & Mahindra slipped 2.75%. The auto major announced that its overall auto sales rose marginally to 66,444 vehicles sold in July 2024 as against 66,124 vehicles sold in July 2023.

Further, the company's Farm Equipment Sector (FES) announced that its total tractor sales (domestic + exports) during July 2024 was at 27,209 units, registering a growth of 8.08% as against 25,175 units reported in the same period last fiscal.

Ashok Leyland fell 2.66% after the company said that its total vehicle sales declined 8% to 13,928 units in July 2024 from 15,068 units in July 2023.

Tata Motors shed 1.12%. The car majors total domestic sales for July 2024 stood at 70,161 vehicles, registering de-growth of 11% compared to 78,844 units in July 2023.

Bajaj Auto rose 0.76%. The company reported 11% increase in total auto sales to 3,54,169 units in July 2024 as against 3,19,747 units in July 2023.

Escorts Kubota lost 1.07%. The companys Agri Machinery Business Division recorded total tractor sales of 5,769 units in July 2024, which is higher by 3.6% as compared with the same period last year.

Meanwhile, Escorts Construction Equipment Business Division has sold 450 machines in July 2024 as against 465 machines sold in July 2023, thereby recording a de-growth of 3.2%.

Stocks in Spotlight:

Adani Enterprises gained 1.57% after the companys consolidated net profit zoomed 115.82% to Rs 1454.50 crore in Q1 FY25 as against Rs 673.93 crore reported in Q1 FY24. Revenue from operations grew by 12.49% to Rs 25,472.40 crore in Q1 FY25 from Rs 22,644.47 crore recorded in the same period a year ago.

Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone (APSEZ) rose 1.26% after the companys consolidated net profit surged 47.2% to Rs 3,112.83 crore on 11.34% in revenue from operations to Rs 6,956.32 crore in Q1 FY25 over Q1 FY24.

Dabur India advanced 1.05% after the companys consolidated net profit increased 8.27% to Rs 494.35 crore in Q1 FY25 as compared with Rs 456.61 crore in Q1 FY24. Revenue from operations jumped 6.98% YoY to Rs 3,349.11 crore in Q1 FY25.

Tata Steel declined 1.36%. The steel majors consolidated net profit surged 51.37% to Rs 959.61 crore in Q1 FY25 as against Rs 633.95 crore reported in Q1 FY24. Total revenue from operations fell 7.93% year on year (YoY) to Rs 54,771.39 crore in the quarter ended 30 June 2024.

Sun Pharmaceutical Industries shed 0.11%. The Pharmaceutical company's consolidated net profit jumped 40.20% to Rs 2,835.6 crore on 5.96% rise in revenue from operations to Rs 12,652.75 crore in Q1 FY25 over Q1 FY24.

Coal India rallied 3.51% after the coal major reported 4.1% rise in consolidated net profit to Rs 10,959.47 crore in Q1 FY25 from Rs 10,528.03 crore in Q1 FY24. Revenue from operations rose 1.59% to Rs 36,464.61 crore in the first quarter of FY25 from Rs 35,893.21 crore recorded in the same period last year.

Prestige Estates Projects dropped 3.29% after the companys consolidated net profit fell 12.85% to Rs 232.6 crore in Q1 FY25 as against Rs 266.9 crore recorded in Q1 FY24. However, revenue from operations grew 10.78% year on year (YoY) to Rs 1,862.1 crore in the quarter ended 30 June 2024.

GE T&D India hit an upper circuit of 5% after the companys standalone net profit surged to Rs 134.54 crore during the quarter as compared with Rs 28.24 crore posted in corresponding quarter last year. Revenue from operations jumped 33.55% to Rs 958.34 crore in Q1 FY25 as compared with Rs 717.57 crore posted in Q1 FY24.

Aster DM Healthcare jumped 6.28% after the companys consolidated net profit jumped 81.29% to Rs 81 crore in Q1 FY25 as compared with Rs 44.68 crore in Q1 FY24. Revenue from operations jumped 19.1% YoY to Rs 1001.87 crore during the quarter.

Sonata Software tumbled 9.98% after the companys consolidated net profit declined 4.29% to Rs 105.63 crore in Q1 FY25 as against with Rs 110.36 crore posted in Q4 FY24. Revenue from operations grew by 15.32% quarter on quarter (QoQ) to Rs 2527.43 crore in Q1 FY25.

Global Markets:

European stocks declined while most Asian stocks ended lower on Thursday.

The Bank of Japan signaled further interest rate hikes. China's market rebound also faltered as disappointing business activity data dampened investor sentiment.

Caixin purchasing managers index data on Thursday showed an unexpected contraction in Chinas manufacturing sector. The reading came just a day after government PMI data showed a similar trend. The Caixin/S&P Global manufacturing purchasing managers index (PMI) fell to 49.8 in July from 51.8 the previous month, the lowest reading since October.

The region largely ignored a strong rally on Wall Street, where optimism about a potential September interest rate cut from the Federal Reserve and robust tech earnings boosted investor confidence.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.24%, the S&P 500 gained 1.58% and the Nasdaq Composite advanced 2.64%. The Federal Reserve held interest rates steady in the 5.25%-5.50% range on Wednesday but hinted at a possible rate cut in September if inflation cools down.

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