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Informist, Monday, Apr. 28, 2025

By Akash Mandal

MUMBAI – Benchmark indices ended higher Monday, resuming their rise after two sessions of decline. Index heavyweight Reliance Industries led the gains in the Nifty 50 after it reported robust earnings for the March quarter and provided a positive outlook for the next five years. Bank stocks rose and were also among the top gainers in the 50-stock index.

The Nifty 50 ended at 24328.50 points, up 289.15 points or 1.2%, and the BSE Sensex closed at 80218.37 points, up 1005.84 points or 1.3%. "Now Nifty (Nifty 50) is facing resistance near 200 SMA (day simple moving average) levels...so view is sideways to positive," a technical and derivatives analyst at a domestic brokerage said. The 200-day simple moving average for the Nifty 50 is currently around 24050 points, the analyst said. Broader market indices also ended higher. Smal-cap indices ended slightly higher and mid-cap indices gained 1-2% each.

Reliance Industries ended over 5% higher and hit a six-month high after the company's consolidated net profit for Jan-Mar rose 2.4% on year to INR 194.07 billion, higher than analysts' estimates of INR 183.57 billion. Several brokerages were positive on the stock as the company said its bottom line for the green energy segment will be on par with its flagship oil-to-chemicals segment by 2029-31. The company also commissioned a 1-gigawatt heterojunction solar module manufacturing facility. The stock, which has a weightage of 8.12% on the Nifty 50, lifted the index 0.4% higher.

Bank stocks also rose with State Bank of India, ICICI Bank, and Axis Bank ending 1-2% higher. Public sector banks such as Union Bank of India, Punjab National Bank, and Indian Bank also gained around 3% each. A large part of the portfolio of foreign investors consists of bank stocks due to their stable returns and relative insulation from geopolitical factors. Foreign investors have net bought Indian equities for eight straight sessions now, buying shares nearly worth INR 325 billion. The Nifty Bank, which had fallen for the past three sessions after hitting a record high Wednesday, ended over 4% higher.

Barring Nifty IT, all other sectoral indices ended in the green. HCL Technologies and Mphasis were the worst-hit among technology stocks. They ended 2% and 1% lower, respectively. Most defence stocks soared as any escalation in tensions between India and Pakistan would result in more business for these companies. Garden Reach Shipbuilders & Engineers, Data Patterns (India), and Cochin Shipyard gained 6-8% each. The Nifty India Defence ended 4% higher at an over four-month high. 

Among other stocks, Shriram Finance ended down 5% and was the biggest laggard in the Nifty 50. The stock had fallen as much 9% after the company's net interest margin for the March quarter contracted by 77 basis points on year to 8.25%. The company met analysts' expectations for its March quarter net profit; it reported a net profit of INR 21.39 billion, up 10% on year.

Shares of Motilal Oswal Financial Services ended more than 4% lower after it reported a net loss of INR 647.7 million for the March quarter against a net profit of INR 7.23 billion a year ago. The company's revenue declined sharply to INR 11.90 billion in the March quarter from INR 21.54 billion a year ago due to net loss on fair value change of INR 4.30 billion compared a gain of INR 2.34 billion a quarter ago. 

Tejas Networks ended nearly 13% lower and was the worst hit in the Nifty 500 after the company reported a loss for the March quarter against a net profit a year ago due to increased investments in research and development and one-time charges on certain inventory. The stock ended at an over one-month low.

Ramkrishna Forgings hit an 18-month low in early trade and ended nearly 5% lower after the company said its net worth would take a possible hit of 4-5% due to discrepancies in inventory. A rough calculation on the basis of the company's net worth as on Sept. 30 shows this would amount to INR 1.2 billion-INR 1.5 billion. The company had Monday disclosed its book inventory was higher than the physical inventory.

Shares of RBL Bank ended over 10% higher after its Jan-Mar net profit of INR 687 million was significantly above analysts' estimates of INR 494.29 million. However, the net profit of the bank fell 81% on year due to 90% rise in provisions. Shares of Sonata Software ended over 7% higher after the company signed a five-year deal worth $73 million with a major US-based company in the technology, media and telecom sector.

* Of the Nifty 50 stocks, 39 rose and 11 fell

* Of the Sensex stocks, 24 rose and 6 fell

* On the NSE, 1,532 stocks rose, 1,375 fell, and 85 were unchanged

* On the BSE, 1,958 stocks rose, 2,038 fell, and 183 were unchanged

* Nifty India Defence: up 4.1%; Nifty Oil & Gas: up 3.2%; Nifty IT: down 0.2%

BSE                                               NSE

Sensex: 80218.37, up 1005.84 points or 1.3%      Nifty 50: 24328.50, up 289.15 points or 1.2%

End

US$1 = INR 85.03

Edited by Ashish Shirke

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