Valuation of TCS, ITC declines in the week
Indicating that Hindustan Unilever (HUL) which sells almost 40 percent of its brands in thehinterlands will increase its focus on rural markets, the consumer goods major today called for convergence of urban and rural marketers so that prosperity spreads to the rural areas.
Top gainers of the session included Bajaj Auto, Kotak Bank, M&M, Vedanta, IndusInd Bank, Asian Paints, HDFC Bank, Reliance Industries, HUL, HDFC, ITC, Tata Steel and Tata Motors, rallying up to 5 per cent.
The broader NSE Nifty too ended 98.30 points, or 0.89 per cent, down at 10,918.70.
Consumer goods major Hindustan Unilever on Monday posted a 21.91 per cent increase in net profit to Rs 1,062.31 crore in the quarter ended December 31 on robust sales across businesses.
Despite near-term headwinds of rising input costs and the possibility of lower demand for products as Covid dented rural & urban India, and impacts both production & consumption, analysts remain bullish on stocks of fast moving consumer goods (FMCG) companies and expect the index to relatively outperform its peers in the second half of fiscal 2021-22 (FY22). In the past one year, prices of key commodities such as groundnut oil, mustard oil, Vanaspati, soya oil, sunflower oil and palm oil have shot up in the range of 20 per cent to 60 per cent, data show. The FMCG sector macros in this backdrop, according to analysts, have further deteriorated because of weakness in consumer demand and likely margin pressure due to elevated crude oil, palm oil and global food prices.
In the Sensex pack, Axis Bank, Tata Motors, Infosys, Kotak Bank, HDFC Bank, RIL, Bajaj Auto, SBI, HUL, Tata Steel, Vedanta, HFDC, TCS, ITC and Sun Pharma jumped up to 4.64 per cent.
With a revival in demand and consumption, FMCG companies are looking forward to 2022 with positivity and hopes of sustaining a healthy growth trend across both rural and urban markets while gearing up to cater to the ever-increasing digitally active consumers and tackle the challenge of higher commodity prices. Health and wellness and convenience are going to remain key trends and FMCG companies are strengthening their core brands, driving premiumisation across their portfolios with targeted innovations as consumers are gravitating towards trusted brands looking for quality, purity and hygiene, in continuation of the trend that started since the pandemic last year. FMCG makers are accelerating digitalisation and are investing in building capability in e-commerce and Direct-to-Consumer channels, identifying it as a key vector of their growth as the threat of a possible third wave is still not away.
Top gainers in the Sensex pack included Sun Pharma, IndusInd Bank, RIL, ITC, Vedanta, Asian Paints, HDFC and Infosys, advancing up to 3.02 per cent.
Higher prices are burdening household budgets and threatening the margins of leading manufacturers.
SBI was the top gainer in the Sensex pack, jumping around 3 per cent, followed by Kotak Bank, Axis Bank, Bajaj Auto, Tech Mahindra, UltraTech Cement and PowerGrid. NSE Nifty rose 36.40 points to 15,337.85.
Of the 1,145 offers made this year, consulting firms made up 34 per cent, followed by banking, financial services and insurance, pharma/healthcare, IT/ITeS and FMCG/retail.
M&M was the top gainer in the Sensex pack, surging 3.37 per cent, followed by Sun Pharma 2.53 per cent, Asian Paints 1.88 per cent, ITC 1.66 per cent, HDFC Bank 1.58 per cent and Tech Mahindra 1.51 per cent.
SBI was the biggest gainer in the Sensex pack, rallying up to 12 per cent, followed by Sun Pharma, HDFC, Tata Steel, Bajaj Finance, Maruti, ICICI Bank and Bharti Airtel.
He is a member of the Board of Directors of Whirlpool Corporation, Pearson and Qualcomm Incorporated.
After swinging nearly 330 points, BSE Sensex finished 172.69 points or 0.43 per cent higher at 40,412.57. Similarly, the 50-scrip NSE Nifty appreciated 53.35 points or 0.45 per cent to close at 11,910.15.
Other losers were Tata Motors, Bharti Airtel, HCL Tech and Bajaj Finance, shedding up to 3.51 per cent. The broader NSE Nifty too tumbled 73.50 points, or 0.63 per cent, to settle at 11,588.35.
Automobile company Tata Motors, metals and mining major Vedanta, oil marketing firm Bharat Petroleum Corporation (BPCL), private sector IndusInd Bank, and two-wheeler major Bajaj Auto have witnessed their market cap slip below the Rs 1-trillion mark this year.
Sanjiv Mehta, chairman of the country's largest consumer goods company, HUL, believes that the second wave of the Covid-19 pandemic between April and June this year has been a mere pause in India's consumption story, and that it will not change the country's overall growth trajectory. India is poised for growth, especially in the fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) sector, Mehta told shareholders at the company's annual general meeting on Tuesday. The signs of recovery are becoming evident with many states lifting lockdown restrictions in recent weeks.
Nirma detergent brand has shed its affordable tag for a more premium positioning against Surf, as rival Ghadi consolidates its position as a mass-market player.
ONGC was the top gainer in the Sensex pack, rallying over 13 per cent, followed by HCL Tech, Hero MotoCorp, NTPC, TCS, M&M, Infosys and Maruti. NSE Nifty soared 306.55 points, or 3.21 per cent, to 9,859.90.
Top gainers in the Sensex pack included ICICI Bank, Infosys, Bajaj Finance and HDFC Bank, rising up to 2.67 per cent.
Ajit Mishra, vice president, Research, Religare Broking, answers your queries.
Reach out-of-court settlement on trademark violation.
Adani Ports, HUL and L&T gained the most, while ICICI Bank, ONGC, GAIL and Tata Steel lost the most
Ajit Mishra, vice president, Research, Religare Broking, answers your queries.
Future Group and V-Mart have put in place systems to prevent panic buying at their neighbourhood grocery stores.
Ajit Mishra, vice president, research, Religare Broking, answers your queries.
The list includes Hindustan Unilever, Asian Paints and Bharti Airtel - firms that investors feel are most likely to come up with the next big innovation.
Tata Steel was the top loser in the Sensex pack, sinking over 5 per cent, followed by SBI, IndusInd Bank, Bajaj Finance, HDFC Bank and NTPC. NSE Nifty tanked 371 points to 16,614.20.
As wholesalers largely failed to meet GST norms, companies were in a fix. According to industry veterans like Sunil Duggal, chief executive of Dabur, the hazard led many to look beyond third-party distribution and take the leap to cover unattended markets directly.
SBI was the biggest loser in the Sensex pack, tumbling 3.29 per cent, followed by Tata Steel, ICICI Bank and Maruti, which shed up to 2.76 per cent.
The shares will be bought in the open market on both the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) and National Stock Exchange (NSE) over a period of time.
Ajit Mishra, vice president, research, Religare Broking, answers your queries.
TCS emerged as the biggest gainer among the top-10 firms
The broader NSE Nifty rose 47.50 points, or 0.43 per cent, to 11,105.35. During the day, it climbed a peak of 11,141.75 and touched a low of 11,049.50.
According to traders, Chief Economic Adviser Subramanian's comments practically ruling out a stimulus package for the economy weighed on investor sentiment.
Over the past week, the BSE benchmark Sensex rose 319.49 points to end at 25,838.71
Tata Steel and Axis Bank were among the top gainers in the Sensex pack, surging up to 6.67 per cent following their March quarter results.
Ramdev made nature-to-goodness products popular, and reaped benefits. Then he seemed to lose focus and the last thing it needs is more distraction, like the passionate founder shooting his mouth off yet again
