Equity Alert
Max Healthcare falls 3%; co's Q3 net profit misses estimates
This story was originally published at 11:38 IST on 6 February 2026
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Equity Alert: Max Healthcare falls 3%; co's Q3 net profit misses estimates
MUMBAI--1105 IST--Shares of Max Healthcare Institute fell over 3% to an intraday low of INR 1,008 on NSE Friday after rising 1.5% in the previous session, when the company reported a 26% on-year growth in its net profit for the December quarter, but missed consensus estimates. The company reported a consolidated net profit of INR 3.01 billion for the December quarter. The company's revenue for the quarter rose nearly 11% on year to INR 20.68 billion.
The company's sequential profit growth declined 39% due to a fall in occupancy and one-off costs. Overall hospital bed occupancy fell to 74% from 75% a year ago and 77% in the September quarter. Max Healthcare reported an exceptional cost of INR 482.4 million related to implementation of the new labour codes and stamp duty expenditure related to one of its subsidiaries.
"Developing hospitals are expected to ramp up gradually (for the company), driving incremental occupancy and revenue growth," Financial Express reported, citing a research report by Axis Securities. The company remains focussed on scaling up oncology and international patient businesses while maintaining strong return ratios," according to the report. The brokerage expects the recent central government health scheme rate revision to generate a revenue of over INR 2 billion for the company once fully implemented in schemes linked to this policy, such as the ex-servicemen contributory health scheme.
All the five brokerage reports available with Informist on the company have a 'buy' recommendation with an average target price of INR 1,320. (Eshitva Prakash)
Equity Alert: Indices remain unchanged post MPC meeting outcome
MUMBAI--1100 IST--Benchmark indices remained largely unchanged post the Monetary Policy COmmittee's meeting outcome, in which the Reserve Bank of India decided to keep the repo rate unchanged at 5.25% and maintain a 'neutral' stance. Meanwhile, information technology stocks were trading lower. The Nifty 50 was weighed down by the heavyweight HDFC Bank, which fell nearly 1%, and Tata Consultancy Services, which fell over 2%.
At 1055 IST, the Nifty 50 was at 25494.20, down 148.60 points, or 0.6% and the BSE Sensex was at 82937.85, down 376.08 points, or 0.5%. Only eight constituents on the Nifty 50 were trading in the green.
ITC was the top gainer in the 50-stock index, up nearly 2%. Bajaj Finance, Power Grid Corp. of India, and Kotak Mahindra Bank were up nearly 1?ch. Information technology stocks Tata Consultancy Services, Tech Mahindra, Wipro, Infosys, and HCL Technologies were down 1-2%. Shares of Max Healthcare Institute, Tata Steel, State Bank of India, Apollo Hospitals, Shriram Finance, Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone, and Eternal were down 2?ch.
The Reserve Bank of India raised the growth projection for GDP for the June quarter of 2026-27 (Apr-Mar) to 6.9% from 6.7%. For the September quarter of FY27, the central bank has raised the GDP projection to 7.0% from 6.8?rlier. The RBI Governor, Sanjay Malhotra said that real GDP is poised to register significantly higher growth in FY26.
All the broader market indices were in the red with the Nifty Smallcaps down 1.2-1.5%. The Nifty Midcaps were down around 1?ch. A 5?ll in the stock of Cyient weighed down on the Nifty Smallcap 50, which fell 1.5%. The Nifty Smallcap 100 was weighed down by an over 3?ll in the shares of Central Depository Services.
All the sectoral indices were in the red, with Nifty IT and Nifty PSU Bank as the major laggards, down 2% and 1%, respectively. The fall in the shares of Canara Bank, which were down nearly 2%, weighed down on the Nifty PSU Bank.
Shares of Hitachi Energy India and Godfrey Phillips were the top gainers in both the Nifty 200 and Nifty 500 indices, up nearly 12% and nearly 10%, respectively. Hitach Energy India resumed trading after hitting the upper circuit.
Coforge was the worst hit in the Nifty 200 index, down over 4% and Poly Medicure was the worst hit in the Nifty 500 index, down 7%. (Adhithya Aji)
Equity Alert: Hitachi Energy up 14% on Q3 result; margins, order book seen up
MUMBAI--1000 IST--Shares of Hitachi Energy India rose nearly 14% to an intraday high of INR 21,889 on NSE in the early minutes of trading Friday, a day after the company reported that its bottom line in the December quarter nearly doubled on year. Brokerages expect performance for the company to improve further on the back of better operating margins and order book growth, which rose to its highest-ever value in the December quarter.
The company reported a net profit of INR 2.61 billion in the December quarter and its top line rose 28% on year to INR 20.82 billion. Both the metrics edged out the consensus Street view on the company's December quarter results. The company's order backlog of INR 298.72 billion was the highest ever and, excluding last year's order for the Khavda high voltage direct current project, its order inflow was up nearly 74% on year.
The company's earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortisation margin at 16.6% was a positive surprise for HDFC Securities. The brokerage expects the ramp-up of the high voltage direct current order book to dilute core EBITDA margins, but absolute EBITDA is expected to grow since these orders are seen as growth accretive and margin dilutive. The brokerage expects the positive margin trajectory to be maintained with the growth in volume. HDFC Securities has raised the company's adjusted profit after tax estimate by over 13% for FY26 and maintained an 'add' rating on the stock with a 7.5% increase in its target price to INR 22,892.
Nuvama Institution Equities has trimmed its target price on the stock, but raised its earnings per share estimate by 12% to factor in higher margins. The brokerage retained its 'buy' call on the stock, owing to robust execution. The company's execution rose 28.5% on year to INR 20.8 billion in the December quarter. In Apr-Dec, the company's execution was up nearly 20% on year, according to Nuvama Institutional Equities. (Eshitva Prakash)
Equity Alert: Indices open lower tracking global cues; IT stocks fall
MUMBAI--0944 IST--Benchmark indices opened lower, taking cues from global markets, which fell due to losses in software stocks on account of fears that artificial intelligence would pose a threat to software services companies. Information technology stocks were the worst hit on the indices. The Nifty 50 was weighed down by a fall in the shares of Infosys.
At 0943 IST, the Nifty 50 was at 25534.45 points, down 108.35 points or 0.4%, and the BSE Sensex was at 83028.74 points, down 285.19 points or 0.3%.
Bajaj Finance, Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles, and Bharti Airtel were the top gainers in the 50-stock index, up around 1?ch. Shares of Kotak Mahindra Bank, Bajaj Finser, and Power Grid Corp. of India were also up nearly 1?ch. Information Technology stocks, Tech Mahindra, Tata Consultancy Services, Infosys, HCL Technologies, and Wipro were down 1-2%.
Hitachi Energy was the top gainer in both the Nifty 200 and Nifty 500 indices. The stock hit the upper circuit of INR 21,118, up 20%. The stock rose after the company reported a net profit of INR 2.61 billion, up over 90% on year and revenue of INR 20.82 billion, up nearly 28% on year. The bottom line was higher than analysts' view of INR 2.36 billion and the top line was higher than the analysts' view of INR 20.06 billion.
Shares of Life Insurance Corp. of India rose over 6%. The stock rose after the company's December quarter net profit rose 17% on year to INR 129.58 trillion. Life Insurance Corp. of India was among the top gainers in both the Nifty 200 and Nifty 500 indices.
Coforge was the worst hit in the Nifty 200 index, down 4%, and Aditya Birla Fashion was the worst hit in the Nifty 500 index, down nearly 6%. (Adhithya Aji)
Equity Alert: Jana Small Finance Bank down 2% ahead of Oct-Dec earnings
MUMBAI--0938 IST--Jana Small Finance Bank's shares fell over 2% to a low of INR 338.90 ahead of the bank's December quarter earnings. At 0931 IST, shares of the bank were at INR 342.60, down 1% from the previous close.
ICICI Securities, the only brokerage with estimates for Jana Small Finance Bank's Oct-Dec earnings, expects the bank to report a net profit of INR 845 million, down nearly 24% on year and but up nearly 13% sequentially. The brokerage estimates the bank's net interest income at INR 6.79 billion, up over 14% on year and nearly 10% on quarter. The bank's net interest income grew marginally on year to INR 6.18 billion in the September quarter.
The small finance bank's gross advances are expected to rise 19% on year to INR 333.6 billion, while its deposits are seen growing 30% to INR 337.32 billion, according to the brokerage firm. For the September quarter, the bank's total secured advances rose over 34% on year to INR 229.4 billion. Deposits grew 31% to INR 325.32 billion as on Sept. 30.
ICICI Securities expects the lender's net interest margin to contract by 36 basis points on year to 8.4%. The bank's net interest margin slipped marginally to 6.6% in the September quarter from 6.7% a quarter ago.
Jana Small Finance Bank has just one 'buy' rating on the stock with an average target price of INR 580. For the September quarter, the bank reported a net profit of INR 749.91 million. Shares of the company were down nearly 23.2% from Oct. 17, when the company announced its September quarter earnings. The company will announce its Oct-Dec earnings post market hours Friday. (Taniva Singha Roy)
Equity Alert: Nuvama ups Page Ind stock to 'buy', cuts target price 3%
MUMBAI--0850 IST--Nuvama Institutional Equities has upgraded its recommendation on the shares of Page Industries to 'buy' from 'reduce' and reduced the target price 3% to INR 41,225. The brokerage said the company was able to maintain strong margins despite a streak of slower growth. The revenue growth was driven by a 1.4% increase in volume and 4.2% improvement in realisations because of better product and channel mix, the brokerage said.
The company reported a net profit of INR 1.90 billion for the December quarter, down over 7% on year. The top line was INR 13.87 billion, up nearly 6%. The bottom line of the company was below the Steet's estimate of INR 2.18 billion and the revenue was marginally higher than the expectation of INR 13.86 billion.
"e-commerce performance remained strong, supported by improved consumer experience and expansion of digital footprint," said Nuvama. Page Industries' gross margin expanded 159 basis points, driven by stable input costs, strategic raw material sourcing, and tight cost control. Employee costs rose 13% on year due to increments, additional manpower for retail and manufacturing expansion, and strengthening of the product management team, according to the brokerage.
Nuvama has reduced the estimate for the company's revenue in 2025-26 (Apr-Mar) by 0.5% and the profit after tax by 1.3%. The revenue estimate for FY27 was cut 2.4% and the profit after tax estimate raised by 3.8%. The upgrade on the stock is due to the recent correction, Nuvama said.
The company now represents 113,600 multi-brand outlets, against 110,176 multi-brand outlets in the year-ago quarter. The company launched the second wave of JKY Groove, the company's causal wear segment, during the quarter and has expanded 140 exclusive brand outlets. "Fresh collection is likely in April with the company aiming to expand the reach to 500 EBOs," Nuvama said.
The goods and services tax reduction is largely immaterial for the company as the core innerwear portfolio is priced below INR 1,000 and remains unaffected. The impact is limited to other products, resulting in a negligible impact at the overall brand level.
On Thursday, shares of the company ended nearly 4% higher at INR 35,640. The stock was up for four consecutive sessions and gained nearly 9% during the period. (Adhithya Aji)
Equity Alert: Indices likely to fall slightly; outcome of MPC meet in focus
MUMBAI--0845 IST--Benchmark equity indices may extend some losses at market open on Friday, tracking negative global cues. The Reserve Bank of India's monetary policy decision later in the day is expected to direct the market movement. Indices may also remain under pressure as foreign investors shift their focus to underlying fundamental concerns about expensive valuations, rupee depreciation, and unimpressive earnings.
On the global front, shares of software and data services companies in the US extended their decline overnight as investors were worried that an advancement in artificial intelligence tools could hurt the sector's growth. The American depository receipt of Infosys closed slightly higher, while those of Wipro ended in the red. Benchmark equity indices in the US ended sharply lower on Thursday, weighed down by a fall in technology giants. Most Asian indices mirrored losses on Wall Street, led by South Korea's KOSPI, which was down over 3?ter a fall in heavyweight technology companies such as Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix, CNBC reported.
Back home, brokerages expect the central bank to keep the benchmark repo rate unchanged at 5.25% and continue to use liquidity management as the primary tool to manage volatility in yields. "We believe the RBI will enter a prolonged pause by maintaining status quo on Friday," JM Financial Services said.
The GIFT Nifty 50 indicates a slightly lower start for the Nifty 50. At 0845 IST, the February contract of GIFT Nifty was at 25631 points, down 12 points from the Nifty 50's previous close. On Thursday, the Nifty 50 index closed at 25642.80 points, down 133.20 points, or 0.5%, and the BSE Sensex closed at 83313.93, down 503.76 points, or 0.6%. "An upside breakout from this range could push the index toward 26100 spot levels. Conversely, sustained trading below 25550 would likely drag it lower toward 25100 to fill the gap created during the Feb 3 rally," Vipin Kumaar, assistant vice-president, technical and derivatives at Globe Capital Market, said.
Shares of Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles and Bharti Airtel will be in focus as these companies released their December quarter earnings after market hours on Thursday. Both companies disappointed the market with their weak earnings. Investors will also focus on a slew of December quarter earnings slated for release later in the day. Among Nifty 50 majors, Tata Steel is likely to see a sharp year-on-year rise in its consolidated bottom line for the period. (Eshitva Prakash)
Equity Alert: Most Asian markets down, KOSPI sees volatile week
MUMBAI--0822 IST--Equity indices in Asia, barring the Nikkei 225 and the Topix First section indices in Japan, traded lower Friday. The Australian S&P/ASX 200 Index fell the most. The KOSPI has seen a tumultuous week with the index triggering its buy-side sidecar as well as its
lower-side sidecar during the same week, which prompted markets to halt trading after each session.
Shares of the two largest capitalised companies in the index, Samsung and SK Hynix were down around 1% during the session. Shares of defence heavyweight Hanwha Aerospace Co. was down nearly 4% and weighed on the index. South Korea's market is heavily weighted towards chip and automotive companies that have witnessed sharp swings over the past week due to the sentiment over technology stocks, CNBC reported. Some investors have expressed concerns. However, some experts argue the backdrop of the wild swings lies in the growing sophistication of individual investors in South Korea, The Chosun Daily reported. "Concerns over profitability in AI-related stocks have led investors to repeatedly realise gains, causing the market to swing sharply," Kim Dae-jun, a researcher at Korea Investment & Securities was reported as saying.
Shares of Japanese pharmaceutical companies went against the grain of the Nikkei and the broader Topix First Section index and were lower during the session. The fall in shares of pharmaceutical companies came after US President Donald Trump's website offering the discounted prescription medications went live, Reuters reported. Trump unveiled TrumpRx.gov after striking deals with 16 of the largest global drugmaking companies for "most-favoured nation" prices for his compatriots in exchange for exemption from US tariffs. Shares of Sumitomo Pharma Co. were down nearly 3% and those of Takeda Pharmaceutical Co. fell nearly 2%.
Following are the levels of key Asian indices at 0820 IST:
|
INDEX |
LEVEL |
CHANGE IN % |
|
CSI 300 Index |
4664.53 |
(-)0.13 |
|
Hang Seng Index |
26469.39 |
(-)1.55 |
|
KOSPI |
5100.09 |
(-)1.23 |
|
Nikkei 225 Day |
54072.53 |
0.47 |
|
TOPIX FIRST SECTION |
3678.95 |
0.73 |
|
FTSE Singapore Straits Times |
4943.48 |
(-)0.65 |
|
S&P/ASX 200 Index |
8737.60 |
(-)1.71 |
| IDX Composite | 7980.74 | (-)1.52 |
(Akshat Saksena)
Equity Alert: US indices end lower Thu on fall in tech stocks, jobs data
MUMBAI--0742 IST--Equity indices in the US ended lower on Thursday, with the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite indices recording a fall for a third consecutive session. Shares of software companies continued to weigh on sentiment amid fears of artificial intelligence taking a toll on the software services industry. Jobs data for January added to the pressure on markets.
The S&P 500 software and services index fell 4.6% and shed around $1 trillion in market value since Jan. 28, Reuters reported. Shares of Microsoft fell around 5% owing to the weakness, with those of Sales Force and Service Now ending nearly 5% and 8% lower, respectively. "I would classify this as a sell-everything mindset at this point," Dave Harrison Smith, chief investment officer and head of technology investing at asset management firm Bailard, was reported as saying. Shares of Thomson Reuters Corp. ended nearly 6% lower. This is despite the company, which owns the Westlaw legal database and the Reuters news agency, reporting its results in line with estimates and also announced dividend for the December quarter. "The uncertainty around the eventual impact of AI means near-term earnings results will be important signals of business resilience, but in many cases insufficient to disprove the long-term downside risk," Ben Snider, Goldman Sachs' chief US equity strategist, was reported as saying.
The software selloff is part of a wider trend of rotation out of technology stocks and into value-oriented sectors such as consumer staples, energy, and industrials that were struggling in the bull market, which commenced in October 2022, Reuters said. "We're seeing people de-risk from technology in a general way, and we've been seeing that since the beginning of the year," Andrew Wells, chief investment officer at SanJac Alpha in Houston, was reported as saying. The selloff has spread to sectors exposed to the software industry as well, such as asset management companies over concerns that they extend loans without private credit. Shares of Blue Owl, an asset management firm, fell around 4%.
Shares of Alphabet declined nearly 1% as its capital expenditure plans of $185 billion for 2026 raised concerns, but a rise in shares of Broadcom, up nearly 1%, after the announcement of Alphabet's capital expenditure offered hopes for AI traders, CNBC reported. Shares of Qualcomm fell nearly 9% due to a weaker-than-expected forecast owing to the shortage of global memory chips.
Contributing to the sombre environment, outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas reported that US employers announced 108,435 layoffs in January, making it the highest total for the month since the global financial crisis. Initial jobs claims for the week rose more than expected as well, along with job openings in December falling to their lowest level since September 2020. This comes prior to the release of the official January jobs report next week, which has been delayed due to the partial government shutdown that ended Tuesday.
Following are the closing levels of US indices Thursday:
|
Index |
Level |
Change in % |
|
S&P 500 |
6798.40 |
(-)1.23 |
|
NASDAQ Composite |
22540.59 |
(-)1.59 |
|
Dow Jones Industrial Average |
48908.72 |
(-)1.20 |
(Akshat Saksena)
US$1 = INR 90.44
IST, or Indian Standard Time, is five-and-a-half hours ahead of GMT
Edited by Deepshikha Bhardwaj
All prices from National Stock Exchange, unless otherwise specified.
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