More Stories

Informist, Thursday, Jan. 16, 2025

By Anjana Therese Antony

MUMBAI – Short positions were added to the derivatives chain of Wipro ahead of its quarterly results Friday as the company is widely expected to post not just an on-quarter decline in key earnings metrics for Oct-Dec, but also the weakest performance among large-cap information technology peers in India. Premiums on out-of-the-money call options expiring on Jan. 30 fell slightly, while those on put contracts rose, hinting at the bearishness ahead.

The Bengaluru-based company's consolidated net profit is seen falling nearly 5% on quarter to INR 30.57 billion, according to an average of the estimates of 15 broking firms. If so, this would be the first sequential decline in the bottom line in four quarters. The consolidated revenue is seen declining 0.3% sequentially to INR 222.31 billion. In the last six quarters, the top line declined sequentially four times. 

Wipro is scheduled to release its quarterly results after market hours on Friday. Its post-earnings press conference with the leadership team will be held at 1630 IST and the conference call with analysts at 1900 IST. Ahead of the results, the stock closed 1.6% lower at INR 288.05 on the National Stock Exchange on Thursday. The stock has fallen 6.8% in 30 days but rose 8.3% in 90 days. Shares of Wipro fell nearly 5% so far in January, snapping a seven-month winning run during which it had gained nearly 38%.

In the options chain of the IT company, premiums on call strikes INR 280-INR 300 fell 7-11%, while those on INR 290-INR 250 put options rose 41-73%. The maximum open interest addition was at INR 290 call and INR 250 put options. 

Short bets were added to the futures chain of Wipro, where open interest in the January series rose 4.8% to 59.1 million and the contract closed 1.6% lower at INR 287.95. Analysts said the stock may not see major gains until it manages to perform at par with its industry peers.

On the overall market, traders placed slightly bullish bets on the back of expectations of better corporate earnings growth in Oct-Dec and upcoming quarters, softer US inflation data, likely rate cut by the US Federal Reserve in January, and softer crude oil prices. However, they do not expect sharp gains amid expensive valuations, selling pressure from foreign investors, and lower-than-expected government spending trends.

Benchmark indices closed marginally in the green for the third consecutive session. The Nifty 50 and Sensex ended 0.4% higher each at 23311.80 points and 77042.82 points, respectively. The near-term support for the 50-stock index is pegged at 23300-23100 points and resistance at 23450-23500 points, a senior technical and derivatives analyst at a domestic broking firm said. 

Premiums on 23300-24200 call strikes rose 29-57%, while those on 23300-23100 put contracts declined 31-37%, hinting that the market may retain its near-term upside momentum. The January futures contract of the Nifty 50 also saw the addition of long bets amid the market's marginal gains. Open interest rose 1.4% to 13.72 million and the contract closed 0.6% higher at 23406.90 points.

--Nifty 50 Jan closed at 23406.90, up 141.00 points; 95.10-point premium to spot index

--Nifty 50 Feb closed at 23539.00, up 138.35 points; 227.20-point premium to spot index

--Nifty 50 Mar closed at 23680.00, up 133.45 points; 368.20-point premium to spot index

Reliance Industries, Infosys, HDFC Bank, HDFC Life Insurance Co., ICICI Bank, Axis Bank, State Bank of India, Zomato, Trent, Tata Consultancy Services, Tata Motors, L&T Technology Services, Adani Enterprises, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Bharti Airtel, and Tech Mahindra were the most actively traded underlying stocks Wednesday. End

US$1 = INR 86.55

Edited by Saji George Titus

For users of real-time market data terminals, Informist news is available exclusively on the NSE Cogencis WorkStation.

Cogencis news is now Informist news. This follows the acquisition of Cogencis Information Services Ltd by NSE Data & Analytics Ltd, a 100% subsidiary of the National Stock Exchange of India Ltd. As a part of the transaction, the news department of Cogencis has been sold to Informist Media Pvt Ltd.

Informist Media Tel +91 (22) 6985-4000

Send comments to feedback@informistmedia.com

© Informist Media Pvt. Ltd. 2025. All rights reserved.