Sensex ends choppy trade 70 points higher, Nifty tops 13,750; IT stocks shine
Subdued global sentiment weighed on domestic equity markets on Friday as investors booked profits across the board, barring information technology (IT) sector. However, last hour buying in select pharma and bank stocks helped indices to settle the day in the green.
The benchmark S&P BSE Sensex settled the day at 46,961 levels, up 70 points or 0.15 per cent. The index hit a record high of 47,026 in the opening deals but erased gains on sell-off in large private banks, metals and realty stocks.
At close, Bajaj Finance, Infosys, State Bank of India (SBI), and Titan (up between 1.4 per cent and 2.4 per cent) were the top gainers while IndusInd Bank, HDFC Bank, ONGC, and Maruti Suzuki ended the day as top laggards.
The Nifty50 index, on the other hand, ended at 13,760.5 levels, up 20 points or 0.14 per cent.
The broader markets ended in the red for the second straight day. The S&P BSE MidCap index closed at 63 points, or 0.35 per cent, lower at 17,801 level. The S&P BSE SmallCap index, too, dipped 42 points, or 0.2 per cent, at 17,769 levels.
Shares of KNR Constructions moved higher by 9 per cent to 347, hitting a fresh 52-week high, on the BSE on Friday after the company said its board has approved bonus share in the ratio of 1:1. “The board of directors of the Company, at its meeting held today, has recommended issue of bonus shares to the members of the Company by capitalization of its securities premium reserves in the ratio of 1 bonus equity share for every 1 existing equity share held by the members as on ‘record date’ to be fixed hereafter for this purpose,” KNR Constructions said in a BSE filing.
Shares of Garware Polyester edged higher by 8 per cent to Rs 366, hitting a multi-year high on the BSE, in the intra-day trade on Friday after the company said it became the first paint protection films (PPF) manufacturer in India. The firm sees Rs 300 crore incremental revenue by financial year (FY) 2023 on the back of its entry into the PPF segment.
Shares of Pidilite Industries jumped 4 per cent to Rs 1,699 on the BSE in the early morning deals on Friday on the back of heavy volumes in an otherwise subdued market. The stock of the specialty chemicals’ firm was trading close to its all-time high level of Rs 1,710 touched on March 11, 2020.
Shares of BEML rallied 5 per cent to hit a 10-month high of Rs 923 on the National Stock Exchange (NSE) on Friday after bulk deal data showed that Porinju Veliath’s Equity Intelligence India bought 265,000 shares of the company at Rs 847.63 per share on Thursday. The name of the seller could not be immediately ascertained.
Here are some picks from the week gone by.
