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Informist, Friday, May 22, 2026                                      Tel +91 (22) 6985-4000

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Equity Alert: Max Healthcare shrs fall 7%; Q4 PAT, sales sharply below view 

 

MUMBAI--1011 IST--Shares of Max Healthcare Institute fell over 7% to an intraday low of INR 1,011.30. The company detailed its March quarter earnings post market hours Thursday. The company's consolidated net profit and revenue were sharply below the Street's expectations. A double-digit rise in expenses and an unchanged average bed occupancy rate impacted the company's Jan-Mar earnings. 

 

For the March quarter, Max Healthcare Institute reported a consolidated net profit of INR 3.42 billion, up over 7% on year. This was sharply below the Street's expectations of INR 4.39 billion. The revenue of the company rose over 12% on year to INR 21.43 billion. This was sharply below analysts' estimate of INR 26.33 billion. The company's average bed occupancy was 75% in Jan-Mar, unchanged from the year-ago quarter. 

 

Total expenses of the company rose 11% on year to INR 17.26 billion. Of the total expenses, professional and consultancy fees, which account for the majority, rose over 16% on year to INR 4.73 billion. 

 

At 1007 IST, shares of Max Healthcare Institute were down over 6% at INR 1,021.05. Nearly 4 million shares of the company changed hands on the NSE, higher than over 1 million shares traded till the same time Thursday. The stock was the worst hit among Nifty 50 constituents.  (Adhithya Aji)

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Equity Alert: Market opens tad higher, rises more as banking stocks climb

 

MUMBAI--0941 IST--The benchmark indices opened slightly higher, then rose as banking stocks began rising. The market rose as Iran's government continued to review a proposal from the US for a peace deal in West Asia. Progress on the peace talks is a key market mover currently. Most markets across the Asian continent also moved up. At 0940 IST, the Nifty 50 was at 23748.50 points, up 93.80 points or 0.4%. The BSE Sensex was at 75551.99, up 368.63 points or 0.5%.

 

Heavyweight banking stock ICICI Bank and SBI Life Insurance Co. were the top gainers in the Nifty 50, up nearly 2?ch. Their financial sector peers Kotak Mahindra Bank, Axis Bank, Jio Financial Services, Shriram Finance, State Bank of India, and HDFC Life Insurance Co. were up around 1?ch. Eicher Motors rose over 1% ahead of its March quarter results later in the day. HDFC Bank, the other heavyweight banking stock in the Nifty 50, also rose over 1%.

 

Max Healthcare Institute was the worst-hit in the 50-stock index, down 7%. The company's consolidated bottom line for the March quarter was sharply below the Street's view. The company released its earnings Thursday after market hours. The stock was the major laggard in the Nifty 200 index as well. Fast-moving consumer goods major ITC, Power Grid Corp. of India, and Dr. Reddy's Laboratories fell around 1?ch.

 

All the broader market indices were in the red. The Nifty Smallcap indices fell 0.1-0.2%, and the Nifty Midcap indices were flat or down 0.1%. Among sectoral indices, the Nifty Private Bank, Nifty Bank, and Nifty Financial Services were the top performers, up around 1?ch. The Nifty Media was the underperformer, down over 1%.

 

Page Industries was the top gainer among Nifty 200 constituents, up nearly 5%. The company's March quarter earnings, detailed Thursday, were above the Street's expectations. Varun Beverages and Dixon Technologies rose over 2?ch in the index. Aurobindo Pharma fell over 4%. The pharmaceutical company's bottom line growth was the slowest in three quarters.

 

In the Nifty 500, Honansa Consumer rose nearly 9% to be the top performer while Engineers India was the worst hit, down over 7%. Engineers India's March quarter net profit was down 37% on year.  (Adhithya Aji)

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Equity Alert: To open higher as Asian indices rise; peace talks hopes to aid

 

MUMBAI--0845 IST--The domestic headline indices are expected to open on a positive note tracking gains in Asian markets in early trade. The Iranian government's ongoing review of the latest proposal from the US for a potential deal to end the war in West Asia will largely decide the market's direction for the near term. The fall of crude oil prices to around $105 a barrel is also expected to support market sentiment.

 

US President Donald Trump said he is willing to wait "a couple of days" for an Iranian response to the latest American offer, CBS News reported. He also said his team is "pretty impressed" by Iran's negotiators, but that "we have to get the right answers" to avoid a return to war. Esmaeil Baqaei, Iranian foreign ministry spokesman, said Tehran had "received the points of view of the American side" and was examining them, Firstpost reported. At 0831 IST, the Brent Crude July futures contract was up over 1% at $104.08 a barrel. Crude oil prices have eased since Wednesday after optimistic developments on the global front.

 

At 0832 IST, the May futures contract of GIFT Nifty was largely flat at 23669 points. This is over 14 points higher than the Nifty 50's previous close of 23654.70 points. The June futures contract of GIFT Nifty was also flat at 23729, over 70 points higher than the Nifty 50's Thursday closing level.

 

"The Nifty index yesterday faced resistance near the 23800 level, which is likely to continue acting as a key resistance zone in today's session as well," Sundar Kewat, technical and derivatives analyst at Ashika Group, said. "On the downside, the 23500 level is expected to provide immediate support."

 

Hindalco Industries, Eicher Motors, and Sun Pharmaceutical Industries will be in focus Friday as they will announce their March quarter earnings later in the day. The consolidated year-on-year revenue growth of Eicher Motors for the March quarter is seen at a six-quarter low, as dispatches of its Royal Enfield motorcycles underperformed the industry due to production constraints. The company's consolidated net profit for the quarter is expected at INR 14.39 billion, up 5.6% on year. Sun Pharmaceutical is likely to report a rise of nearly 11% on year in consolidated net profit for the March quarter to nearly INR 27.86 billion. Its revenue is seen at INR 145.94 billion, up nearly 13% on year.

 

Shares of Max Healthcare Institute will also be in the spotlight as the company reported its March quarter results Thursday after market hours. It reported a 7% on-year rise in consolidated net profit for the quarter. Its top line rose over 12% on year. Both metrics missed the Street's view on the company's performance in the March quarter.

 

In the global equity markets, all Asian indices were up on optimism of the US and Iran making progress towards finally agreeing to a peace deal. Japan's Nikkei 225 rose over 2% in early trade. All the three major US indices also settled higher Thursday.  (Arundathi A R)

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Equity Alert: Asian indices rise, Japan's Nikkei 225 outperforms

 

MUMBAI--0830 IST--Indices in Asia rose as market participants assessed the likelihood of the US and Iran striking a peace deal. The Brent crude oil price remaining slightly lower than in the past few days also possibly supported the indices. Brent Crude futures were near $104 per barrel. All major benchmark indices in the region were up. Japan's Nikkei 225 Day outperformed peers to rise over 2%.

 

Japan's inflation eased on an annualised basis in April compared to March. Consumer prices in the country rose 1.4% on year and 0.1% on month. Core inflation, which excludes fresh food and fuel prices, slowed to a four-year low. Core inflation rose 1.9% on year in April. "Although inflationary pressures eased in April, they will pick up again before long. Accordingly, we still think the Bank of Japan is likely to resume its tightening cycle sooner rather than later," Abhijit Surya, senior Asia-Pacific economist at Capital Economics, told Reuters.

 

Meanwhile in South Korea, consumer sentiment improved in May after having declined for two months running. Consumer sentiment regarding current living standards was at 93, two points higher than in April. Sentiment regarding current domestic economic conditions was significantly higher by 15 points on month at 83. One-year forward inflation expectations were lower at 2.8% compared to 2.9% in April. Semiconductor exports and the rally in the South Korean stock market probably supported the sentiment.

 

South Korea's broader market KOSDAQ was very volatile during early trade. Trading in the index was suspended briefly after it rose over 5%, the Dow Jones Newswires reported. The KOSDAQ had opened over 1% higher Thursday. The benchmark index, KOSPI, advanced modestly.

 

The following were the levels of major Asian indices at 0828 IST:

 

Index	Level	Change in %
CSI 300 Index	4809.9684	0.56
Hang Seng Index	25594.33	0.82
Nikkei 225 Day	63094.61	2.29
TOPIX FIRST SECTION	3886.48	0.85
KOSPI	7835.85	0.26
FTSE Singapore Strait Times	5054.29	0.17
S&P/ASX 200 Index	8666.90	0.52

 

(Ruchira Kagita)

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Equity Alert: US indices gain for second day albeit with muted moves

 

MUMBAI--0745 IST--Indices on Wall Street extended gains for the second straight session. Some semiconductor stocks lent support to the market but trade remained largely muted. The 'magnificent seven' stocks were largely flat in the trading session, with the exception of Nvidia Corp. falling almost 2% and Alphabet rising a little over 1%. Brent crude oil prices falling to around $103 per barrel also likely helped limit some losses. 

 

"The silver lining is that from a market perspective, the fragile ceasefire is still holding. It's positive there's still, according to news reports, the possibility of an off-ramp. Oil and market sentiment is very sensitive to every headline," Marc Dizard, chief investment officer at Huntington Wealth Managemen, told Reuters.

 

Among the major stocks in focus was Walmart. The retailer's shares tanked over 7% Thursday after the company retained its guidance for the full year. The company sees net sales growing 3.5-4.5%, and earnings per share to be between $2.75 and $2.85. "If the current elevated cost environment persists, we'd expect somewhat higher retail price inflation in Q2 and the second half of the year," Walmart Chief Financial Officer John David Rainey said on a call with analysts, NBC News reported. 

 

On the macroecnomic front, the number of people in the US filing for fresh jobless claims fell to 209,000 in the week ended May 16 from 212,000 reported last week. The Wall Street Journal had estimated initial jobless claims at 210,000. Continuing claims, meanwhile, were 1.78 million in the week ended May 9. In the previous week, continuing claims were revised to 1.78 million. The data on unemployment does signify a stable labour market but it will be important to see how the impact of the war in West Asia changes course for the US labour market. 

 

Following were the closing levels of major US indices on Thursday:

 

US Indices	Levels	Change in %
Dow Jones Industrial Average	50285.66	0.55
NASDAQ Composite	26293.098	0.09
S&P 500	7445.72	0.17

 

(Ruchira Kagita)

 

US$1 = INR 96.11

IST, or Indian Standard Time, is five-and-a-half hours ahead of GMT

 

Edited by Avishek Dutta

 

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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