Share Market News Today | Sensex, Nifty, Share Prices Highlights: The benchmark equity indices snapped the three-day losing streak, closing the session Friday’s session on a higher note. The BSE Sensex rose 218 points or 0.27% to close at 81,225. The NSE Nifty 50 closed 104 points or 0.42% higher at 24,854. The Bank Nifty closed the day’s trading 1.57% higher at 52,094. The Nifty Midcap 100 closed the session 183 points or 0.31% higher at 58,649.
The NSE Nifty 50 closed 0.46% higher at 24,863.40, while the BSE Sensex closed 0.36% higher at 81,301.
Axis Bank, Wipro, Eicher Motor, Shriram Finance, and ICICI Bank were the top gainers in the Nifty 50. Meanwhile, Infosys, Asian Paints, Britannia, Nestle India, and Hindustan Unilever were the major losers in the Nifty 50 on October 18.
In Q2 FY25, Geojit Financial Services‘ revenue jumped 50% on year to Rs 218.55 crore from Rs 145.51 crore reported a year ago in the same period. The company’s net profit increased to Rs 57.42 crore in the second quarter of FY25 against Rs 37.48 crore reported in the same quarter the previous year.
Banking stocks like ICICI Bank, Axia Bank, and HDFC Bank are contributing the most to the Nifty 50 to trade at the day’s high. Also, heavyweight stock Reliance Industries is contributing almost 14 points to the upside of the index.
Courtesy: NSE
Elecon Engineering reported a standalone net profit of Rs 67.10 crore for the quarter ended September 2024, down from Rs 78.98 crore in the same quarter last year. Following the earnings announcement, the company’s shares plunged 10.07%, trading at Rs 648.80 on the NSE.
Bharti Airtel has completed the deployment of an additional 5MHz spectrum in the 2100 band across Uttar Pradesh (West) and Uttarakhand, the company announced on October 18, 2024. This expansion is aimed at strengthening its 5G and 4G network capabilities in the region. Bharti Airtel’s shares were trading flat at Rs 1,709.75 on the NSE.
Akums Drugs and Pharmaceuticals Limited has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Government of the Republic of Zambia, through its Ministry of Health, for the local manufacturing of medicines. Following this development, Akums’ stock rose by 1.03%, trading at Rs 923.30 on the NSE.
Ajmera Realty & Infra India Limited’s board has approved a preferential issue of equity shares amounting to Rs 2.25 crore. Following this announcement, the company’s shares surged 5.88% on the NSE, trading at Rs 825.15.
Shares of IndusInd Bank, which has tested investor patience throughout 2024, may see $290 million in inflows as global index provider MSCI is expected to increase its weightage. The Mumbai-based private sector lender’s shareholding pattern for the September quarter revealed a significant reduction in foreign institutional investors’ (FIIs) stake, which fell to 55.53% from 59.62% in the June quarter. Following the recent FII sell-off, the foreign room now stands at 24.96%.
The shares of Polycab India Limited were trading at Rs 6,880.85, down by Rs 239.70 or 3.37%, on the NSE today, following the company’s announcement of a 30% year-on-year increase in revenue to Rs 5,498.4 crore for the second quarter ended September 30, 2024. Polycab reported a 4% rise in net profit to Rs 445.2 crore, while its EBITDA grew by 4% to Rs 631.6 crore during the quarter.
As of 12:50 noon on October 18, 2024, a total of 1,623 stocks advanced on the BSE, while 2,111 declined, and 147 remained unchanged. The total number of stocks traded stood at 3,881. Among these, 179 stocks recorded a 52-week high, whereas 49 stocks hit a 52-week low. Additionally, 228 stocks traded in the upper circuit, and 211 were in the lower circuit.
Persistent Systems announced the launch of SASVA 2.0, the latest version of its flagship AI-powered platform that leverages both generative and deterministic AI to transform software engineering. Despite this announcement, shares of the company declined 1.17% on the NSE, at Rs 5,471.20.
As of 12:30 noon, the top gainers on the NSE were Axis Bank, leading with a 5.75% rise, followed by Wipro up 3.39%, Eicher Motors gaining 2.75%, Tata Motors increasing by 2.01%, and Hindalco up 1.93%. On the losing side, Infosys dropped 4.38%, ITC fell 1.83%, Britannia slipped 1.54%, Nestle India declined 1.39%, and Cipla was down 1.20%.
LTIMindtree shares dropped over 5.2% to an intraday low of Rs 6,060.80 following the release of its Q2 FY25 results. The company reported a net profit of Rs 1,251.6 crore, reflecting a 7.7% year-on-year increase and a 10.3% rise sequentially. Revenue grew by 6% year-on-year to Rs 9,433 crore, with a 3.2% sequential increase.
RPP Infra Projects Ltd has received a letter of acceptance for two new projects. The first involves the design and construction of a 7MLD product water conveyance system from the 20 MLD Tertiary Treatment Reverse Osmosis (TTRO) Plant at Kelavarapalli Hosur to SIPCOT Industrial Park, Shoolagiri Phase I & II in Krishnagiri District, Tamil Nadu, including one year of operation and maintenance on a DBO basis, with a contract value of Rs 28.25 crore (including GST). The second project involves providing internal water supply arrangements and constructing two pump rooms in SIPCOT Industrial Park, Shoolagiri Phase I, valued at Rs 7.35 crore. Shares of RPP Infra were up 2.49% on the NSE, reaching Rs 199.65.
Manappuram Finance shares tumbled 18% to an intra-day low of Rs 145.42 after the Reserve Bank of India cracked the whip on the subsidiary, Asirvad Microfinance. The lender of last resort took stringent action against four Non-Banking Financial Companies (NBFCs). The RBI has issued directions to Asirvad Micro Finance Limited, Arohan Financial Services Limited, DMI Finance Private Limited and Navi Finserv Limited, to cease and desist from sanction and disbursal of loans, effective from the close of business of October 21, 2024. Also, these entities were found to charge excessive pricing and were not compliant with the regulatory guidelines
Except for Wipro and TCS, all the constituents of Nifty IT were trading in the red. Infosys, LTIMindtree, and Tech Mahindra were contributing the most to the downside of Nifty IT on October 18.
Courtesy: NSE
LTIMindtree fell more than 5.2% to an intraday low of Rs 6,060.80 a day after the company reported its quarterly results. The company reported a net profit of Rs 1,251.6 crore in Q2 FY25, a 7.7% increase from the previous year in the same quarter. It has risen by 10.3% sequentially. The company’s revenue rose 6% on year to Rs 9,433 crore in the same period aforementioned. Sequentially, it increased 3.2%.
Commenting on the gold outlook Renisha Chainani, Head Research – Augmont – Gold For All said that for the fourth straight day, the price of gold rises and reaches a new all-time high of $2727 (around Rs 77640). The yellow metal continues to gain from major central banks’ rate-cutting policies. Political unpredictability in the US and tensions in the Middle East give the commodity a further boost. The European Central Bank decreased interest rates yesterday for the third time this year, the first time the rates have been lowered consecutively in 13 years.
Chainani also added that given the deteriorating economic outlook, additional rate cuts are expected. In the meantime, the close contest between Donald Trump and Kamala Harris creates further uncertainty, which raises the price of gold to a record high in conjunction with the possibility of more Middle East war escalation. Gold prices have sustained above the resistance of $2700 (~Rs 77000) the next target is $2750 (~Rs 78500).
Bajaj Broking has stated that if the FY25 annualized super earnings are attributed to the post-IPO fully diluted paid-up equity capital, the asking price reflects a price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio of 26.73. Based on FY24 earnings, the P/E ratio stands at 26.28. While the issue appears relatively fully priced, the brokerage emphasizes that the company is positioned for promising prospects following the completion of its ongoing expansions.
Shares of Axis Bank soared over 4% to an intraday high of Rs 1,184.70 on the BSE after the private lender posted a solid 18% year-on-year (YoY) increase in standalone net profit for Q2 FY25, reaching Rs 6,918 crore. This marks a significant rise from the Rs 5,864 crore reported in the same quarter of the previous financial year.
Shares of Bengaluru-based IT services provider Wipro surged over 5% on Friday, October 18, following its better-than-expected September quarter earnings, despite a cautious Q3 guidance. The stock rose 5.35% to an intra-day high of Rs 557.05 on NSE.
Infosys, ITC, HDFC Bank, Reliance Industries, and Titan were the major contributors to the fall of Nifty 50 on October 18.
Courtesy: NSE
Wipro, Axis Bank, Eicher Motors, TCS, and Tata Motors were the top gainers in the Nifty 50. Meanwhile, Infosys, Titan, Bajaj Auto, Shriram Finance, and ITC were the major losers in the Nifty 50 on October 18.
The Nifty 50 opened 74 points or 0.30% lower at 24,676 while the BSE Sensex opened 259 points or 0.32% lower at 80,747
“Trends indicate that FII selling and DII buying is likely to continue. A bounce back is likely in the next two or three days but it is unlikely to sustain since sentiments have turned weak. Investors may wait and watch for the market to stabilise and slowly accumulate largecaps like leading private sector banks beaten down by FII selling. ICICI Bank and HDFC Bank have the potential to give decent returns in the medium-term,” said V K Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Financial Services.
Tata Consumer Products, Jio Financial Services, ICICI Lombard General Insurance Company, Zee Entertainment Enterprises, Aether Industries, L&T Finance, Manba Finance, Mastek, Jindal Saw, Oberoi Realty, Hindustan Zinc, Tejas Networks, Kesoram Industries, Ashapuri Gold Ornament, Benares Hotels, Best Agrolife, Duncan Engineering, Elecon Engineering, Ganesh Housing Corporation, GNA Axles, Indostar Capital Finance, Mangalore Refinery & Petrochemicals, Mudra Financial Services, Ponni Sugars (Erode), Sarveshwar Foods, Supreme Infrastructure India, and Tree House Education.
The 24-carat gold rate in India was Rs 77,210 per 10 grams on October 18. The rate for 24-carat gold per gram is Rs 7,711. The rate of 22-carat gold was Rs 70,684 per 10 grams.
The rate of 24-carat gold has risen by 1.20% in the last one week, and the yellow metal has gained by 2.80% in the last ten days. The silver is currently quoted at Rs 91,890 per kilogram.
Shares in the Asia-Pacific region are showing mixed performance on Friday morning. The Asia Dow is up by 0.70%, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 has gained 0.30%. In contrast, South Korea’s KOSPI index is down by 0.08%, and the benchmark Chinese index, the Shanghai Composite, is trading lower by 1.05%. Meanwhile, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index is in positive territory, rising by 0.15%.