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Informist, Thursday, Apr. 24, 2025

By Akash Mandal

MUMBAI – Benchmark indices snapped a seven-session winning run to end lower Thursday as investors booked profits after the indices gained nearly 9% in the past seven sessions. Large-cap players such as ICICI Bank and Bharti Airtel ended around 2% lower each and were the biggest drags on the Nifty 50.

Fast-moving consumer goods major Hindustan Unilever was another major drag on the index. Shares of the company fell after the company reported a lower-than-expected gross margin for the March quarter to cap off a weak 2024-25 (Apr-Mar). The company also reduced its forecast range for earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation margin to 22-23% in the near-to-mid-term from the 23-24% it had projected in January. The company reported a net profit of INR 24.93 billion for the quarter, a tad higher than the analysts' estimate of INR 24.77 billion. The stock, the worst hit in the Nifty 50, ended down over 4%.

The Nifty 50 ended at 24246.70 points, down 0.3%, and the BSE Sensex closed at 79801.43 points, down 0.4%. Barring a brief rise in early trade, benchmark indices remained lower throughout the session. Broader market indices also ended lower, but only slightly.

Nestle India ended flat after the company reported an over 5% on-year fall in its bottom line. Its net profit fell to INR 8.85 billion, but beat analysts' estimates of INR 8.70 billion. Tata Consumer Products fell 5% in early trade despite the company late Wednesday reporting its strongest net profit growth in 11 quarters in the March quarter. The stock fell on concerns over high valuations and a lack of clarity about the margin recovery. However, most analysts were positive about the strong revenue growth, even though the margin fell due to high costs. The stock recovered to end 1% higher at INR 1,161.30. Nuvama Institutional Equities, Sharekhan, and Nirmal Bang Institutional Equities all maintained their 'buy' ratings on the stock. Nuvama and Nirmal Bang raised their target prices by around 6% each, to INR 1,335 and INR 1,350, respectively.

Most sectoral indices ended lower, with the Nifty Realty, which fell 1.4%, being the worst hit. Macrotech Developers, Prestige Estates Projects, and Anant Raj ended down 2-3%. The realty index snapped a seven-session gaining streak, during which it gained 15%. Nifty Bank recovered from its day's lows but still ended 0.3% lower, dragged down by heavyweight ICICI Bank. Derivatives analysts were expecting the index to correct a bit after the sharp gains in April. Despite ending lower for two consecutive sessions, the index is still up nearly 2% for the week.

Syngene International fell 13% and was the worst hit in the Nifty 500. The stock fell to its lowest level since Mar. 4 after its net profit for the March quarter fell over 8% on year to INR 1.74 billion. The company reported its earnings after market hours on Wednesday. The company's comment that earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortisation margin are likely to moderate going ahead also weighed on the stock.

Can Fin Homes ended nearly 5% lower despite the company reporting a net profit of INR 2.34 billion, beating the analysts' estimates. However, the financier's net interest margin fell 14 basis points on year to 3.82%, while its cost of borrowing rose 4 bps to 7.56%. Shares of Persistent Systems came off their highs to end slightly lower. The stock had risen over 4% in early trade after the company reported robust earnings growth for the March quarter, buoyed by strong deal execution and a healthy deal pipeline. The company's net profit for the quarter grew over 6% sequentially to INR 3.96 billion, broadly in line with consensus estimates. Its revenue rose 6% sequentially to INR 32.42 billion.

Divi's Laboratories ended 5% higher and was the top gainer in the Nifty 200. The stock hit a lifetime high of INR 6,308.50 earlier in the session after global brokerage Citi raised the target price to INR 7,050 from INR 6,850. The brokerage expects Orforglipron, which is a best-in-class glucagon-like peptide-1 drug manufactured by US-based Eli Lilly, to be the next addition to Divi's Laboratories' manufacturing pipeline.

Shares of Bajaj Housing Finance ended 0.3% higher after rising nearly 4% in early trade as the housing financier late Wednesday reported a 54% on-year rise in net profit for the March quarter. Its revenue rose nearly 26% on year to INR 25.08 billion. Shares of Dalmia Bharat ended over 4% higher after hitting a six-month high earlier in the session. The company's net profit for the March quarter beat analysts' estimates by a significant margin. The company on Wednesday reported a consolidated net profit of INR 4.35 billion for the March quarter, sharply higher than the INR 2.78 billion expected by the Street. The net profit for the quarter was up 38% on year and over seven times sequentially, driven by a sharp expansion in margin to 19.4% from 15.2% a year ago.

ACC ended nearly 1% higher. The stock, which was up over 3% earlier in the session, came off its highs after the company reported its March quarter earnings. ACC reported a net profit of INR 7.51 billion for the March quarter, sharply higher than the INR 4.73 billion expected by the Street. While the company's bottom line included a one-time income of INR 1.35 billion, it would still have beaten the consensus estimate on net profit even without the one-time gain.

* Of the Nifty 50 stocks, 20 rose and 30 fell

* Of the Sensex stocks, 14 rose and 16 fell

* On the NSE, 1,404 stocks rose, 1,441 fell, and 85 were unchanged

* On the BSE, 1,920 stocks rose, 2,015 fell, and 151 were unchanged

* Nifty Realty: down 1.4%; Nifty FMCG: up 1.1%; Nifty Pharma: up 1.1%

BSE                                               NSE

Sensex: 79801.43, down 315.06 points or 0.4%      Nifty 50: 24246.70, down 82.25 points or 0.3%

End

US$1 = INR 85.26

Edited by Saji George Titus

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