Markets ended the customary 'Muhurat' trading session to usher in the new year Samvat 2073 on a negative bias with the broader markets outperforming the benchmark indices.
The S&P BSE Sensex ended down 11 points at 27,930 and the 50-share Nifty settled 12 points lower at 8,626. In the broader markets, the BSE Midcap index gained 0.5% and the Small-cap index gained nearly 1% to hit 52-week high in intra-day trade. Market breadth ended strong with 1960 gainers and 495 losers on the BSE.
"Stock specific action was seen in the customary 'Muhurat' trading session today with good results getting rewarded. The focus is more on the broader markets compared to the index stocks. In the near term, the outcome of the US Presidential Elections and the US Federal Reserve's stance on interest rates would be the key events to watch out for" says A K Prabhakar, Head of Research, IDBI Capital
The stock exchanges will remain closed for trading on Monday, October 31, 2016 on account of ‘Diwali Balipratipada’.
FIIs
Foreign institutional investors were generally sellers in the last month of Samvat 2072. They were net sellers in equities worth Rs 778 crore on Friday, October 28, 2016, the last trading day of Samvat 2072, as per the provisional data on BSE.
However, in Samvat 2072, foreign institutional investors bought Indian equities worth $5.8 billion (Rs 38,600 crore), data showed.
Index Movers
Infosys ended up 0.5% followed by private lenders Axis Bank and ICICI Bank along with pharma majors Lupin and Sun Pharma.
HDFC twins, HDFC Bank and index heavyweight HDFC were among the top losers along with Tata Motors and index heavyweights ITC and Reliance Industries.
Asian Paints which had corrected last week witnessed buying at lower levels to gain 0.5%.
ONGC gained nearly 1%. The state-owned exploration major said that the board approved bonus issue in the ratio of 1:2 and an interim dividend of 90%.
Sun Pharma ended up 0.6%. The company in a recent release announced the US Launch of Authorized Generics for Benicar, Benicar HCT, Azor and Tribenzor.
Tech Mahindra was up 1% after sharp gains on Friday post its September quarter earnings. Revenue for the quarter grew 8.3 per cent to Rs 7,167 crore; sequentially, it was up 3.5 per cent. Bloomberg had estimated the revenue would grow 2.3 per cent and net profit to decline 6.4 per cent. However, net profit was Rs 644.7 crore, down 16.9 per cent from the Rs 776 crore a year before. From the earlier quarter, it was down 14 per cent, due to a one-time restructuring cost of Rs 85 crore.
Broader Markets
Astec Lifesciences rallied 18% after the company reported more than five-fold jump in consolidated net profit at Rs 11.18 crore for the quarter ended September 30, 2016 (Q2FY17). The agrochemicals company had profit of Rs 2.02 crore in the same quarter year ago.
Dish TV ended up 4% on the back of healthy subscription revenue growth. Operating revenue stood at Rs 779 crore in the September quarter, up 9.6 per cent over last year. Consolidated subscription revenue was Rs 728.8 crore, up 11.9 per cent.
NMDC closed nearly 2% higher after the company announced signing of a tripartite pact with Government of Madhya Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh State Mining Corporation Ltd (MPSMCL) for geological and geophysical exploration for various minerals in the state.
Indian Hotels Company, which manages the Taj Group of hotels, rebounded from its recent lows on short covering and renewed buying interest. The stock gained nearly 3%.
IPO Corner
The Rs 1,100-crore Initial Public Offer (IPO) of equity in Varun Beverages which closed on Friday was subscribed 1.85 times. Varun Beverages is one of the largest franchisees of carbonated and non-carbonated beverages sold under brands owned by PepsiCo outside America.
Global Markets
US stocks ended flat with negative bias on Friday as the political uncertainty ahead of the US Presidential Elections continues to weigh on investor sentiment. The Dow Jones industrial average ended down 8 points at 18,161, the S&P 500 closed 7 points down at 2,126 and the Nasdaq composite settled 26 points lower at 5,190.
