Sensex, Nifty end tad higher; auto, power stocks rise, HCL Tech falls 6%

Indian benchmark indices closed marginally higher in volatile trade on Monday, following mixed cues from global peers, supported by gains in the auto, realty, and power stocks. The equity market witnessed a stock-specific reaction as investors reacted to corporate earnings. The continued rise in Covid-19 cases across the country and uncertainty about its impact on the economy weighed on market sentiments.

The BSE Sensex ended 85.88 points, or 0.14%, higher at 61,308, while the NSE Nifty rose 52.35 points, or 0.29%, to settle at 18,308. Earlier today, Sensex opened lower and moved in a narrow range of 277 points in intraday trade, following negative cues from Asian peers.

In line with the benchmark indices, the broader markets also ended higher. The S&P BSE Midcap index rose 0.23%, while the S&P BSE Smallcap index climbed 0.61%.

The overall market breadth on the BSE was positive, with 2,416 shares advancing out of total 4,013 traded stocks. Out of the total shares, 1,427 shares fell and 170 were unchanged.

On the sectoral front, all indices, barring pharma and bank, ended in the green with auto and power gaining the most. The BSE Auto index ended 1.98% higher, led by Hero MotoCorp, Tata Motors, Mahindra & Mahindra, Motherson Sumi Systems, and Maruti Suzuki India. The auto sector was followed by the power index, which surged 1.41%. The top gainers in power sectors include Adani Green Energy, Tata Power Company, JSW Energy, NTPC, and Torrent Power.

Top gainers and losers

The top gainer among the BSE Sensex pack was UltraTech Cement, which closed 2.75% higher as investors cheered December quarter results. The other gainers include Mahindra & Mahindra, Maruti Suzuki India, Tata Steel, and Tata Consultancy Services.

On the losing side, IT major HCL Technologies topped the losers’ chart by falling 5.89% after it released the December quarter earnings report. The other notable losers include HDFC Bank, Axis Bank, Tech Mahindra, and Sun Pharmaceutical Industries.

Shares in news

HDFC Bank: Shares of the country’s leading private sector lender dropped 1.4% despite reporting robust earnings for the December quarter of 2021. The bank has posted 18.08% year-on-year (YoY) growth in its net profit at ₹10,342 crore for the second quarter ended December 31, 2021. The Mumbai-headquartered bank’s net interest income rose 13% to ₹18,443 crore, while non-interest income grew 10% to ₹8,184 crore.

Hero MotoCorp: Share of the country's largest two-wheeler maker jumped 5.1% after it received approval from its board to further invest up to ₹420 crore in electric two-wheeler company Ather Energy. The investment will be made in one or more tranches.

Tata Consultancy Services (TCS): Shares of the IT major hit an all-time high of ₹4,043 intraday, before settling 1.43% higher on the BSE. The stock has gained nearly 5% in the last three sessions after its Q3 earnings beat the street estimates.

Maruti Suzuki India: The share price of the country's largest carmaker rose over 2.2% after it hiked prices of its models by up to 4.3% with immediate effect, owing to an increase in various input costs.

HCL Technologies: Shares of the IT major tumbled 5.9% as investors gave thumbs down to its earnings report. The company has reported a 13.6% YoY drop in net profit at ₹3,442 crore for the December quarter of 2021. Revenue for the quarter grew 15.7% YoY to ₹22,331 crore. In a separate development, the IT company has inked a pact for the acquisition of Hungary-based data engineering services provider Starschema in a $42.5 million deal.

Metro Brands: Shares of Rakesh Jhunjhunwala-backed newly listed company surged 19% after it posted a 62.5% YoY growth in net profit at ₹100.15 crore for the third quarter ended December 2021. Total income also surged 57.2% from ₹310.42 crore to ₹487.98 crore in the same period.

UltraTech Cement: Shares of cement company climbed 2.7% after it posted a consolidated profit of ₹1,708 crore for the quarter ended December 2021, up 7.8% from ₹1,584 crore in the year-ago period. Consolidated revenue grew by 6% to ₹12,985 crore compared to ₹12,254 crore in the December 2020 quarter.

Renaissance Global: Shares of jewelry company jumped 5.9% after it signed a strategic licensing agreement with NFL Properties LLC. As per the agreement, Renaissance and the National Football League (NFL) will collaborate to design a unique branded jewellery collection using NFL intellectual property, it said in a press release.

Asian stocks mixed on subdued Chinese data, European markets rise

Global markets traded mixed on Monday, with Asian shares trading mostly higher as investors digested a slew of Chinese data and easing of monetary policy in the world's second-largest economy. Meanwhile, European stocks traded mostly higher in opening amid earnings optimism. Investors also kept an eye on the U.S. Federal Reserve meeting due next week.

In the Asia-Pacific region, Japan’s Nikkei 225 index closed 0.74% higher, while the Straits Times Index in Singapore added 0.18%. Taiwan Weighted Index surged 0.66%, while Australia’s ASX 200 index climbed 0.32%. Thailand’s SET Composite also traded higher by 0.25%.

In mainland China, Shanghai Composite and Shenzhen Component surged 0.58% and 1.5%, respectively, after data showed that China’s economy grew 4% in the December quarter from a year earlier. The data released by the National Bureau of Statistics on Monday highlighted that gross domestic product (GDP) grew faster than expected at 8.1% in 2021.

On the flip side, the Hang Seng index in Hong Kong fell 0.68%, while South Korea’s KOSPI nosedived 1.1%. Indonesia’s Jakarta Composite also dropped 0.72%.

Meanwhile, in the European market, Germany’s DAX and France’s CAC index rose 0.38% and 0.76%, respectively, in opening deals. The U.K.’s FTSE 100 index gained 0.75%, while Spain’s IBEX index and Italy’s FTSE MIB index surged 0.32% and 0.4%, respectively, in early deals.

Over the weekend, the major U.S. indices closed mixed as investors reacted to data and corporate earnings by major banks. The Dow Jones Industrial Average settled 0.56% lower. However, the S&P 500 ended 0.08% higher, and the NASDAQ Composite added 0.59%.

The U.S. stock markets will remain closed on Monday in honour of Martin Luther King Jr.