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Informist, Friday, Mar. 6, 2026                                      Tel +91 (22) 6985-4000

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Equity Alert: Mazagon Dock up 9%;co completes talks for INR-990-bln contract

 

MUMBAI--0956 IST—Shares of Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders rose over 9% to INR 2,560, their highest level in over a month. The stock after the company Thursday confirmed that the contract committee negotiations for the INR-990-billion defence contract with the Indian Navy have been completed. With this completion of negotiations with the government, the proposal has been taken up for approval of the competent authority, the company said in an exchange filing.

 

This contract, once finalised, would be the largest contract for Mazagon Dock, significantly increasing its order-book, which has declined over the past 5-6 years, ICICI Direct Research said in a report. As of December, the company's order book was INR 237.58 billion compared to INR 497.00 billion at the end of 2020-21 (Apr-Mar). Decline in order backlog has been the key concern for Mazagon Dock, which, in turn, had led to a moderation in revenue growth in the last few quarters, the brokerage said. "We believe that, revenue growth will pick up considerably from FY28 onwards, once the execution begins," ICICI Direct Research said. 

 

At 0949 IST, the stock was up nearly 8% at INR 2,539.60 on the National Stock Exchange and was the top gainer in the Nifty 200 index. So far in the session, nearly 5 million shares of the company have changed hands on the NSE, compared to the 167,448 shares traded till the same time Thursday. The two research reports on the company available with Informist has a 'buy' call on the stock. (Arya S. Biju)

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Equity Alert: Indices open lower amid US-Iran hostilities; ICICI Bank down 2%

 

MUMBAI--0944 IST--Benchmark indices opened lower amid escalating military action in West Asia. Higher crude oil prices continued to weigh on sentiment across global markets, with Wall Street indices ending lower Thursday and Asian markets opening mixed Friday. The Nifty 50 was weighed down by the heavyweight banking stocks, HDFC Bank and ICICI Bank, which were down over 1% and 2%, respectively.  

 

At 0937 IST, the Nifty 50 was at 24659.55 points, down 106.35 points or 0.4%, and the BSE Sensex was at 79663.04 points, down 352.86 points or 0.4%. 

 

Defence stock Bharat Electronics was the top gainer among Nifty 50 constituents, up nearly 2%. Information technology shares were the major gainers in the index. HCL Technologies, Infosys, Wipro, Tata Consultancy Services, and Tech Mahindra rose 1-2%. The heavyweight Reliance Industries was up nearly 2%. Shriram Finance, NTPC, Power Grid Corp. of India, and Trent rose around 1?ch. 

 

Meanwhile, InterGlobe Aviation and ICICI Bank were the worst-hit stocks in both the Nifty 50 and Nifty 200 indices. Shares of InterGlobe Aviation were down over 2%. Shares of Larsen & Toubro fell nearly 2% as well. L&T and InterGlobe Aviation fell amid the continuing hostilities in West Asia, which led to disruption in the operations of these companies. Larsen & Toubro's order book has significant exposure to West Asia, while, due to the ongoing missile attacks in the region, InterGlobe Aviation had to cancel its flights to these countries. 

 

Max Healthcare Institute, Coal India, Axis Bank, UltraTech Cement, Bajaj Finserv, Tata Steel, Maruti Suzuki India, HDFC Life Insurance Co., and Bharti Airtel were down 1-2%.  

   

Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders was the top gaining stock in the Nifty 200. It was up 7%. The company said that contract committee negotiations for a INR-990-billion defence contract with the Indian Navy have been completed, and the proposal has been taken up for approval of the competent authority. Shares of its defence peer Bharat Dynamics rose over 5%. 

 

In the Nifty 500, Kirloskar Brothers was the top gaining stock, up over 8%. In contrast, Force Motors was the worst-hit stock, down nearly 3%.  (Adhithya Aji)

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Equity Alert: HSBC cuts Asian Paints, Berger Paints target price by 7-10%

 

MUMBAI--0857 IST--HSBC has cut its target price for Asian Paints and Berger Paints amid competition in the sector and as "structural issues remain", according to a post by NDTV Profit on social media platform X. The brokerage cut Asian Paints target price by 10% to INR 2,600 and that of Berger Paints by 7% to INR 500. It maintained a 'hold' rating for both companies.

 

"Price hikes could lead to narrowing of volume-value gap, but market and competitive structure is different now," the brokerage said. "Cost inflation is back after almost four years."

 

Thursday, shares of Asian Paints closed slightly higher at INR 2,287 on the NSE, while those of Berger Paints ended nearly 1% lower at INR 434.80. Shares of paint makers have declined recently due to a surge in crude oil prices, which is a key raw material for the industry, due to ongoing US-Iran hostilities and competition from Birla Opus. Asian Paints and Berger Paints have fallen 5-8% in a month and 22-23% in three months. (Anshul Choudhary)

 

 

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Equity Alert: Asian indices mixed after opening lower on high oil prices

 

MUMBAI--0841 IST--Asian indices were mixed in early trade after opening lower due to concerns over the ongoing US-Iran hostilities, which entered its seventh day. Higher oil prices threaten to worsen market sentiment globally, and market participants were also worried about disruption due to artificial intelligence.

 

After the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, Brent crude has been trading over $80 per barrel, up from around $71 per barrel a week ago. At 0825 IST, Brent crude May futures were trading at $84.04 per barrel, down 1%. The rise in oil prices has raised concerns of stagflation and a slower pace of interest-rate cuts by the US Federal Reserve, which may lead to a fall in stocks that are trading at high valuation, Reuters reports. Investors are also pricing in lower rate cuts from major central banks due to inflation risk.

 

Yields on 10-year US Treasury bonds have risen 16 basis points this week to settle at 4.13% Thursday. The US dollar is set to register its largest weekly gain in 16 months on Friday as investors sought the safety of cash, reconciling with the possibility of a prolonged conflict in West Asia.

 

Investors await the joint press conference by the People's Bank of China and the China Securities Regulatory Commission later in the day. The regulators will address the legislative meeting in Beijing, reported the South China Morning Post.

 

Following are the levels of key Asian indices at 0821 IST:

 

Index	Level	Change in %
CSI 300 Index	4641.93	(-)0.12
Hang Seng Index	25601.29	1.11
Nikkei 225 Day	55490.04	0.38
TOPIX FIRST SECTION	3705.80	0.08
KOSPI	5513.52	(-)1.26
FTSE Singapore Strait Times	4841.55	(-)0.1
S&P/ASX 200 Index	8844.4	(-)1.39

 

(Shruti Nair)

 

 

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Equity Alert: Indices likely to open dn; crude prices up on US-Iran tensions

 

MUMBAI--0815 IST--After seeing a rebound Thursday, benchmark equity indices are expected to open lower Friday with crude oil prices continuing to rise amid further escalation in the US-Iran conflict. This comes a day after global markets rose following reports that Iran had signalled to the US Central Intelligence Agency that it was open to talk about ending the war. 

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Thursday that Iran is "not asking for a ceasefire" from the US and Israel, adding that "we don't see any reason why we should negotiate" after nearly a week of war, CNBC reported. Araghchi also said that Iran is "confident" that it can confront the US military if President Donald Trump decides to invade the nation with ground troops. Earlier this week, Trump had indicated that the conflict may last four to five weeks. 

 

Israel and the US on Saturday jointly attacked Iran, killing hundreds, including the country's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Hosseini Khamenei. Iran has since retaliated against Israel and targeted US military facilities around the Persian Gulf. 

 

Oil prices continued to rise, with the West Texas Intermediate crude futures surpassing $80 per barrel level Thursday, after Iran said it hit an oil tanker with a missile. After touching $86 per barrel level intraday, the May futures contract of Brent Crude Oil settled at $85.41 per barrel Thursday. At 0753 IST, the futures contract was at $84.09 per barrel, rising over 8% since Monday. 

 

As a measure to keep oil flowing into the global market, the US Treasury Department issued a temporary, 30-day waiver to allow Indian refiners to purchase Russian oil, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent wrote on an "X" post. "This stop-gap measure will alleviate pressure caused by Iran's attempt to take global energy hostage," Bessent wrote. 

 

The futures contract of Gift Nifty indicates that the Nifty 50 may open lower. At 0755 IST, the March contract of Gift Nifty was at 24655.50 points, indicating an over 100 points fall from Nifty 50's closing price Thursday. "On levels front, 24300 (points) will continue to act as immediate strong support on the downside, while 24850-25000 spot zone will act as a hurdle on the upside," Vipin Kumaar, assistant vice president – technical and derivatives at Globe Capital Market said. News-driven volatility will continue to dictate short-term price movements, he added. (Arya S. Biju)

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Equity Alert: US mkts dn on concerns over higher oil prices, inflation risks

 

MUMBAI--0744 IST--Indices in the US ended lower Thursday as the US-Iran hostilities threaten to push oil prices higher leading to concerns of inflation and doubts over future rate cuts by the US Federal Reserve. Other countries being pulled into the West Asia war and disruption of trade through the Strait of Hormuz remain a major concern.

 

The US-Israel war against Iran entered its seventh day and led to disruption in oil and gas supply. On Thursday, Israel attacked Iran-backed Hezbollah bases in Beirut, Lebanon. Brent crude oil prices have remained in the $81-$85 per barrel range this week. At 0743 IST, Brent crude oil May futures were at $84 per barrel, down 1%.

 

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 785 points, down 1.61%, setting it on track for its worst week since October 2025, Reuters reported. Of the 11 sectors tracked by S&P 500, eight were down. Industrials, materials, and consumer staples fell over 2%. Notably, shares of Caterpillar and United Airlines fell 3-5%. However, a rise in energy stocks helped limit the fall in the index at 0.6%. Chevron gained 3.9% on the possibility of higher revenue due to the rise in energy prices.

 

Following are the closing levels of US indices Thursday:  

 

Index	Level	Change in %
S&P 500	6830.71	(-)0.56
NASDAQ Composite	22748.986	(-)0.26
Dow Jones Industrial Average	47954.74	(-)1.61

 

(Shruti Nair)

 

US$1 = INR 91.65

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.

All percentage changes for share prices are rounded off to the nearest whole number; percentage changes for index values are rounded off to one decimal place.

All times are Indian Standard Time.

 

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