Sensex rebounds 507 pts from lows, ends 138 pts up; auto, IT stocks gain

Closing Bell on August 16, 2023: The shares of SBFC Finance, which debuted on Wednesday at a premium of 44 per cent, settled at Rs 92.2 per share, up nearly 62 per cent over issue price

Sensex rebounds 507 pts from lows, ends 138 pts up; auto, IT stocks gain

Stock market highlights: Defying weak global trends, the domestic equity indices settled in the positive zone on Wednesday as strength in the IT, auto, and select financial and pharma stocks helped erase early morning losses.

The benchmark S&P BSE Sensex closed at 65,539, up 137.5 points or 0.21 per cent, while the Nifty50 index settled aboe the 19,450-mark at 19,465, up 30 points.

Apollo Hospitals, Ultratech Cement, Tata Motors, NTPC, Infosys, M&M, L&T, Maruti Suzuki, Power Grid, SBI, Wipro, HUL, Cipla, Tech M, Dr Reddy’s Labs, HCL Tech, and TCs were the top gainers, up between 0.3 per cent and 2.6 per cent.

In the broader markets, the BSE MidCap and Smallcap indices outran the frontline indices as they increased up to 0.52 per cent.

Among sectors, the Nifty Realty index added 1 per cent, the Nifty Auto, Pharma, and IT indices 0.6 per cent each.

New listing
Shares of SBFC Finance made a stellar debut at the exchanges, listing at 44 per cent premium of Rs 82 per share (over issue price of Rs 57 apiece) on the BSE. The shares settled at Rs 92.21 per share, up nearly 62 per cent over issue price. READ MORE

4:13 PM

COMMENT:: Inflation, global worries weigh on market sentiment

"The initial apprehension stemming from an above-expected surge in domestic CPI inflation, driven by higher food prices, induced volatility in the Indian market. However, the market found some relief as the likelihood of this inflation surge being transitory alleviated concerns, leading to a recovery in the latter part of the trading session. Moreover, as core inflation continued to moderate, the market did not anticipate a rate hike, although the possibility of an extended rate pause seemed more probable. Stronger-than-anticipated retail sales data in the US and concerns about further rating downgrades of US banks contributed to choppiness in Western markets, while Asian markets reacted to the rate cut initiated by the Chinese central bank."

- Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Financial Services

4:11 PM

Solid Debut: SBFC Finance ends Day 1 on the bourses at 62% premium

The stock hit a high of Rs 95.30 on the BSE as against the issue price of Rs 57 per share. READ MORE

4:09 PM

IRFC m-cap zooms past Shriram Finance, IDBI Bank; stock up 62% in 1 month

Indian Railway Finance with Rs 68,086 crore m-cap stood at 86th position in overall ranking, ahead of Shriram Finance (Rs 67,613 crore) and IDBI Bank (Rs 67,310 crore), the BSE data shows. READ MORE

4:08 PM

ITC rises 2% in intra-day deals as brokerages give thumbs up to Q1 results

Shares of ITC climbed 2 per cent to Rs 457 per share in Wednesday's intra-day trade as brokerages gave thumbs up to the conglomerate's April-June quarter performance for fiscal year 2023-24 (Q1FY24). READ MORE

4:05 PM

Defence stocks pricing-in all positives, offer limited upside, say analysts

The rally, which has been accompanied by high valuations, could stagnate in the near term as companies may not meet investors' expectations of sustained performance every quarter, analysts said. READ MORE

4:03 PM

Uno Minda at 52-week high; soars 7% on commissioning EV component plants

The company has also received new orders with annualised peak value of more than Rs 600 crore for EV systems. during the Q1FY24. READ MORE

4:02 PM

Stock of this defence company has zoomed 110% in 6 weeks on strong outlook

Thus far in the calendar year 2023, the stock price of Zen Technologies has skyrocketed 372 per cent, as compared to 7 per cent rise in the S&P BSE Sensex. READ MORE

4:00 PM

Block deal impact: JSW Energy, Religare surge up to 10%, hit 52-week highs

Religare Enterprises hit a 52-week high of Rs 242.55, soaring 10% after around 25 million equity shares changed hands on the BSE till 03:14 PM. READ MORE

3:59 PM

Garden Reach Shipbuilders rallies 33% in 2 days post June quarter results

The BSE has sought clarification from Garden Reach Shipbuilders & Engineers Ltd with reference to movement in volume. READ MORE

3:57 PM

Gangwal stake sale buzz: IndiGo dips 5% intra-day amid block deal of over 18 mn shares

At 09:15 AM; around 18.19 million equity shares representing 4.71 per cent of total equity of IndiGo changed hands on the BSE, the exchange data shows. READ MORE

3:55 PM

Apar Industries hits record high on healthy outlook; zooms 200% from Jan low

For Q1FY24, Apar Industries had posted 61 per cent year-on-year jumped in profit after tax at Rs 197 crore. READ MORE

3:54 PM

Hindustan Oil Exploration sinks 16% as Q1 profit plunges 80% QoQ

Separately, the government has hiked windfall tax on crude petroleum to Rs 7,100 per tonne with effect from August 15, up from Rs 4,250 per tonne. READ MORE