Informist, Friday, May 26, 2023
By Anjana Therese Antony
MUMBAI – Indian equity indices were driven by gains in shares of information technology and fast-moving consumer goods companies, leading the Nifty 50 to a five-month closing high of 18499.35 points. Gains in these stocks also made the Nifty IT and Nifty FMCG the top gainers among the sectoral indices, closing 1.5% higher each.
Analysts attributed the momentum in IT stocks to gains in their US peers. The announcement by Microsoft to introduce Windows Copilot, which will have centralised artificial intelligence assistance integrated into the operating system, and better-than-expected earnings forecast by Nvidia likely changed sentiments about technology stocks, said Chirag Kachhadiya, a research analyst at Ashika Stock Broking.
A revival in US technology stocks and the positive outlook suggested that the growth of Indian IT companies will also normalise in the second and third quarters of 2023-24 (Apr-Mar), Kachhadiya added.
All 10 constituents of the Nifty IT closed higher, up between 1% and 4%. The index hit a two-month high of 29384.75 points during the day, closing 1.5% higher. Shares of IT companies Infosys and Tata Consultancy Services together contributed to a tenth of the gains in the Nifty 50.
The Nifty FMCG also hit a fresh lifetime high of 50425.15 points during the day and closed 1.5% higher, with all its constituents in the green. Together, Hindustan Unilever and ITC also contributed to a tenth of the gains in the Nifty 50.
Investors turned to FMCG stocks when the Indian markets slipped into losses for most of Thursday’s trading hours. Analysts said investors turn to defensive sectors like FMCG when the market undergoes a correction. The optimism towards the sector likely continued in today’s session too.
The Nifty 50 and the Sensex each closed 1% higher at 18499.35 points and 62501.69 points, respectively. Immediate support for the Nifty 50 for the next trading session is seen at 18450 points and resistance at 18600 points. Analysts said the 50-stock index could go up to 18700 if it crosses its immediate resistance.
The broader markets also closed higher. The Nifty mid-cap and small-cap indices closed 0.5-1.0% higher.
Among other sectors, most automobile shares closed higher on the back of optimism created by strong Jan-Mar earnings by most companies. Robust results were driven by margin expansion and an increase in demand, an analyst said. Following the gains, Nifty Auto hit a record high of 14150.00 points intraday and closed 0.7% higher.
A number of stock-specific reactions were also observed. Nifty 50 companies Sun Pharmaceutical Industries, Grasim Industries and Mahindra & Mahindra released their Jan-Mar earnings during market hours today.
Shares of Sun Pharmaceutical Industries, which were flat pre-earnings today, closed 2.6% higher after the company reported robust earnings for the March quarter. The pharmaceutical company’s consolidated net profit for the quarter came in at 19.84 bln rupees, against a net loss of 22.77 bln rupees in the year-ago period. Revenue from operations rose 15.7% on year to 109.31 bln rupees.
Similarly, shares of Mahindra & Mahindra closed 0.3% higher after the company reported a 22% on-year improvement in its bottomline. The company’s net profit rose to 15.49 bln rupees. Revenue from operations rose 31% to 225.71 bln rupees. Analysts had estimated the net profit at 17.37 bln rupees and the topline at 220.82 bln rupees.
However, the Grasim Industries stock closed 0.7% lower after the company reported a sharp fall in its net profit from the year-ago period. The company’s net profit during the quarter fell to 935 mln rupees from the year-ago quarter’s reported figure of 10.68 bln rupees.
* Of the Nifty 50 stocks, 44 rose, 5 fell, and 1 was unchanged
* Of the Sensex stocks, 26 rose, 2 fell, and 2 were unchanged
* On the BSE, 1,969 stocks rose, 1,522 fell, while 139 were unchanged
* Nifty Media: up 2.2%; Nifty IT: up 1.5%; Nifty FMCG: up 1.5%
BSE NSE
Sensex: 62501.69, up 629.07 pts or 1.02% Nifty 50: 18499.35, up 178.20 pts or 0.97%
S&P BSE Sensitive Index Nifty 50
Lifetime High: 63583.07 (Dec 1, 2022) : Lifetime High: 18887.60 (Dec 1, 2022)
Record Close High: 63284.19 (Dec 1, 2022) : Record Close High: 18812.50 (Dec 1, 2022)
2023 1st day close: 61167.79 (Jan 2) : 2023 1st day close: 18197.45 (Jan 2)
2023 Closing High: 62345.71 (May 15) : 2023 Closing High: 18499.35 (May 26)
2023 Closing Low: 59288.35(Feb 27) : 2023 Closing Low: 17311.80 (Oct 17)
2023 High (intraday): 62562.67 (May 15) : 2023 High (intraday): 18508.55 (May 26)
2023 Low (intraday): 58699.20 (Jan 30) : 2023 Low (intraday): 17098.55 (Jan 17)
2022 1st day close: 59183.22 (Jan 3) : 2022 1st day close: 17625.70 (Jan 3)
2022 Closing High: 63284.19 (Dec 1) : 2022 Closing High: 18812.50 (Dec 1)
2022 Closing Low: 51360.42 (Jun 17) : 2022 Closing Low: 15293.50 (Jun 17)
2022 High (intraday): 63583.07 (Dec 1) : 2022 High (intraday): 18887.60 (Dec 1)
2022 Low (intraday): 50921.22 (Jun 17) : 2022 Low (intraday): 15183.40 (Jun 17)
2021 Closing High: 61305.95 (Oct 14) : 2021 Closing High: 18338.55 (Oct 14)
2021 Closing Low: 46285.77 (Jan 29) : 2021 Closing Low: 13634.60 (Jan 29)
2021 High (intraday): 61353.25 (Oct 14) : 2021 High (intraday): 18350.75 (Oct 14)
2021 Low (intraday): 46160.46 (Jan 29) : 2021 Low (intraday): 13596.75 (Jan 29)-
2020 Closing High: 47751.33 (Dec 31) : 2020 Closing High: 13981.95 (Dec 30)
2020 Closing Low: 25981.24 (Mar 23) : 2020 Closing Low: 7610.25 (Mar 23)
2020 High (intraday): 47896.97 (Dec 31) : 2020 High (intraday): 14024.85 (Dec 31)
2020 Low (intraday): 25638.90 (Mar 24) : 2020 Low (intraday): 7511.10 (Mar 24)
2019 High (intraday): 41809.96 (Dec 20) : 2019 High (intraday): 12293.90 (Dec 20)
2019 Low (intraday): 35287.16 (Feb 19) : 2019 Low (intraday): 10583.65 (Jan 29)
2018 High (intraday): 38938.91(Aug 28)) : 2018 High(intraday): 11760.20 (Aug 28)
2018 Low (intraday): 32483.8 (Mar 23) : 2018 Low (intraday): 9951.9 (Mar 23)
2017 High (intraday): 34005.37 (Dec 26) : 2017 High(intraday): 10515.10 (Dec 26)
End
Edited by Rajeev Pai
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