SGX Nifty hints at a flat to positive start for benchmark indices BSE Sensex and NSE Nifty 50. BPCL, Bajaj Finserv, LIC, RailTel among key stocks to watch on Tuesday.
Indian benchmark indices are likely to open mildly in green, hinted SGX Nifty. Ahead of the Economic Survey presentation on Tuesday. Nifty futures were trading higher at 17758 level on the Singapore Exchange. In the previous session, BSE Sensex climbed 170 pts to 59,500, while NSE Nifty 50 rose 45 pts to 17,649. “Markets have been trying to hold the support zone of long-term moving average (200 EMA) however we expect the negative tone to continue until the Nifty reclaims 18000 decisively or forms a reversal pattern. Besides, volatility would continue to keep the traders on the edge citing upcoming events. In such a scenario, it is prudent to restrict positions and prefer a hedged approach,” said Ajit Mishra, VP – Technical Research, Religare Broking Ltd.
Read More: LIC continues to bet big on Adani, remains in green despite share price rout
Stocks in focus on 31 January, Tuesday
Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd: State-owned BPCL reported consolidated net profit of Rs 1,747 crore for Q3FY22, down 36% from Rs 2,579 crore reported a year ago. The net profit is supported by reduction in crude oil prices. BPCL’s revenue from operations rose 13% to Rs 1.33 lakh crore during the quarter from Rs 1.17 lakh crore in the same quarter of the previous year. On a standalone basis, the company reported a net profit of Rs 1959.58 crore, 31% lower on-year, during Q3.
Larsen & Toubro (L&T): The company posted a 24% rise in consolidated net profit at Rs 2,553 crore for the third quarter ended December 31, helped by improved execution of infrastructure projects and growth in IT portfolio. The firm had posted a net profit of Rs 2,055 crore for the same period of the previous financial year. During the reporting quarter, L&T’s consolidated revenues rose 17% to Rs 46,390 crore from Rs 39,563 crore recorded during the same period a year ago.
Punjab National Bank: The public sector lender’s net profit fell 44% on-year in the December quarter due to a rise in provisions. The bank posted a bottomline of Rs 629 crore in October-December, up 53.04% on a sequential basis. PNB’s provisions rose nearly 41% on-year to Rs 4,713.3 crore. Gross non-performing asset ratio fell 312 basis points on-year to 9.76%, while net non-performing asset ratio fell to 3.30% as on December 31 from 4.90% a year ago.
Aditya Birla Fashion and Retail: The company has inducted Ananya Birla and Aryaman Vikram Birla as directors on its board. Ananya and Aryaman are daughter and son of Kumar Mangalam Birla, respectively. The board believes ABFRL will benefit from their new-age insights and business acumen. KM Birla said, “ Ananya and Aryaman’s exceptional individual achievements in their chosen fields and early success with their independent entrepreneurial ventures set them up well for larger responsibilities. Their nuanced understanding of new-age business models and emerging shifts in consumer behaviour will infuse fresh energy to the board of ABFRL.”
Read More: Adani stocks fall sharply; Adani Transmission tumbles over 41% in 3 days
Bajaj Finserv: The company reported a 42% on-year rise in its consolidated net profit to Rs 1,782 crore for the December quarter. Consolidated total income rose 23% to Rs 21,755 crore. The profit before tax rose 36% to Rs 4,418.96 crore. Bajaj Finserv’s performance was driven by an impressive show from the financial services which helped offset the decline in profits of both the insurance companies. Bajaj Finance (BFL) recorded the highest-ever quarterly consolidated net profit of Rs 2,973 crore, a 40% on-year growth, while its wholly owned subsidiary Bajaj Housing recorded an on-year growth of 81% in the profit after tax.
Tech Mahindra: The IT company’s net profit for the third quarter ended December declined 5.3% on-year to Rs 1,297 crore due to high inflation and cost impact due to supply side pressures. The company’s revenues for the December quarter rose to Rs 13,735 crore. The dollar revenue grew 8.8% annually and 1.8% sequentially in constant currency to $1.67 billion on the back of net new deal wins of $795 million around cloud engineering in verticals like telecom and healthcare.
GAIL: The country’s largest gas distributor reported a 90% on-year decline in net profit for the December quarter (Q3FY23) to Rs 397.59 crore, owing to losses in the petrochemical and gas marketing business. The company booked a loss of Rs 349 crore in the petrochemical business after it had to cut run rate due to curtailment in supply of cheaper domestic gas. Its natural gas marketing division, too, incurred a loss while the pre-tax profitability of the core transmission business halved. Revenue from operations rose 37% to Rs 35,939.96 crore in October-December 2022 from Rs 26,175.60 crore a year ago.
Life Insurance Corporation: LIC said on Monday that its total exposure to Adani Group companies is less than 1% of its total assets under management (AUM) at book value. It said that the total value of the Adani group shares it purchased over the past many years is Rs 30,127 crore. This amounts to a market value of Rs 56,142 crore, based on the closing price on 27 January. The clarification came as Adani Group firms have been battered due to a scathing report on the conglomerate by US short-seller Hindenburg Research. LIC’s total holding under equity and debt was Rs 35,917.31 crore as on 31 December 2022 in Adani Group.
Q3 Results today: Coal India, CIL, Power Grid Corporation of India, Sun Pharmaceutical Industries, UPL, ACC, BASF India, Blue Star, Edelweiss Financial Services, Great Eastern Shipping, Godrej Consumer Products, Indian Hotels, Indian Oil Corporation, Jindal Steel & Power, KEC International, KPIT Technologies, Max Financial Services, MOIL, RailTel Corporation of India, Spandana Sphoorty Financial, Star Health, and TTK Prestige will be in focus ahead of their Q3 earnings reports.
