Equity benchmarks ended flat with a positive bias on Friday. L&T, HDFC Bank and ITC helped the market close higher but Infosys and HDFC capped upside.
The 30-share BSE Sensex was up 24.78 points at 31,687.52 and the 50-share NSE Nifty gained 4.90 points at 9,934.80.
The market breadth turned negative in afternoon trade today as about three shares declined for every share rising on the BSE.
IDBI Bank shares gained a percent as the board of directors has approved divestment of its stake in SIDBI.
Glenmark Pharma shares dropped more than 3 percent after brokerage house Credit Suisse slashed its target price on the stock to Rs 650 from Rs 750 per share.
Bajaj Finance shares fell more than 3 percent in the afternoon as the company raised funds through QIP at a discount to its floor price.
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The benchmark indices on Thursday settled the holiday-truncated week lower after index heavyweight Infosys’ revenue guidance and plan to distribute cash to shareholders fell short of expectations, raising concerns at the start of the March quarter earnings.
The geopolitical worries, after the United States launched cruise missiles against an air base in Syria last week and fears of a new weapons test by North Korea, also contributed to the losses.
Investors also took cues from the index of industrial production (IIP) data, which contracted in February and consumer price index (CPI)-based inflation data, which edged up in March.
The S&P BSE Sensex settled at 29,461, down 182 points, while the broader Nifty50 ended at 9,150, down 53 points. For the week, the Sensex shed 245 points or 0.8%, while the Nifty slipped 47 points or 0.5%.
Benchmark indices ended marginally higher, amid a volatile trading session, after gains in oil & gas shares helped offset losses in Infosys and Hindustan Unilever.
Infosys slipped over 2% at Rs 1,026, after hitting 52-week low of Rs 996 in an intra-day trade on the BSE. Infosys reported a better than expected 4.9% growth in consolidated net profit at Rs 3,606 crore for the second quarter ended September 30, 2016 (Q2FY17) over the preceding quarter. Rupee revenue grew 3.1% to Rs 17,310 crore and dollar revenue was up 3.5% at USD 2,587 million on sequentially.
The benchmark S&P Sensex closed at 27,673 levels, up 30 points or 0.1%. Nifty50 index gained 10 points, or 0.1%, to close at 8,583 levels. The broader markets outperformed the benchmark indices. The S&P BSE Midcap and Smallcap rose 0.8% each.
