Stock market news: Benchmark indices, NSE Nifty 50 and S&P BSE Sensex closed higher for the fifth consecutive session on Thursday, bolstered by post-earnings gains in key benchmark constituents such as Axis Bank and Nestle India. However, Kotak Mahindra Bank faced a setback after the central bank prohibited the private lender from adding clients digitally.

The NSE Nifty 50 climbed 0.75 per cent to reach 22,570.35, while the S&P BSE Sensex added 0.66 per cent to close at 74,339.44. Despite opening with a decline of about 0.4 per cent, both benchmarks reversed losses during the trading session.

BSE Sensex has closed above 74,000-mark for the first time since April 12.

"Nifty as expected yesterday found support at 22,300 odd levels & bounced intraday to test 22,624, finally settling for April series at 2,2550, this is the exact range given yesterday. The upward momemtum may continue until next week as well up to May 1, 2024. The knee-jerk reaction of Kotak should not yet be bought, only when prices cross 1700 and sustain over it should it be bought with a stop loss," said Rahul Ghose Founder & CEO, Hedged.in.

Financial services stocks performed well, with the high-weightage sector witnessing a gain of 0.48 per cent.

Axis Bank surged by 6 per cent, marking its highest single-day percentage gain in 18 months, following its quarterly profit beating estimates. According to Anita Gandhi, director at Arihant Capital Markets, "Better-than-expected results, especially from lenders like Axis Bank, have triggered hopes of a healthy earnings season and boosted investor sentiment."

Nestle India also contributed to the market's upward trajectory, gaining 2.5 per cent after reporting a larger-than-expected increase in quarterly profit. Additionally, the consumer company announced a joint venture with drugmaker Dr. Reddy's Laboratories to produce nutraceuticals and supplements. Dr. Reddy's shares climbed by 5 per cent.

These gains from Axis Bank, Dr. Reddy's, and Nestle overshadowed the 10.87 per cent decline in Kotak Mahindra Bank, which faced regulatory action from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI). The RBI barred Kotak Mahindra Bank from acquiring new customers through its online and mobile banking channels and restricted the issuance of new credit cards due to failures in its tech systems.

As a result, Axis Bank surpassed Kotak Mahindra Bank in market capitalization, securing the third position among private banks, trailing behind HDFC Bank and ICICI Bank.

In other sectors, the public sector bank index rose by 3.77 per cent, driven by State Bank of India's surge of 5.12 per cent to a record high.

However, Hindustan Unilever dropped by 1.3 per cent after missing quarterly profit estimates.

(With Reuters inputs.)