Sensex, Nifty end flat; HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank fall, L&T, RIL gain

Stock market today: The National Stock Exchange’s benchmark Nifty 50 index closed flat on Wednesday after a strong dip in the early morning trade.  The Nifty 50 closed at 22,302.5 and BSE’s 30-share Sensex closed 0.06 per cent or 45.46 points lower at 73,466.39.

The benchmark indices were dragged down by market giants such as HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank, Hindustan Unilever, HCL Tech, Infosys, and Bajaj Finance, falling in between 1 to 3.5 per cent. 

BPCL, Hero Moto Corp, Tata Motors, PowerGrid, Hindalco, and L&T were some of the major gainers for the day on the Nifty 50 index. While Dr Reddy, Asian Paint, Grasim, UltraTech Cement, HDFC Bank, and SBI Life were top losers on NSE’s benchmark index. 

Reliance Industries, the largest company by market capitalisation, gained 1.12 per cent or 31.80 points to reach 2,835.75. 

Despite the prevalence of bearish sentiment in the market, the midcap and smallcap shares showed resilience as the Nifty Midcap 100 closed 0.83 per cent higher while the Nifty Smallcap 100 inched 0.6 per cent higher. 

Nifty’s Auto index led the market with 1.56 per cent gains out of which Bharat Forge topped the table with close to 16 per cent gains followed by Tata Motors which surged 2.9 per cent, and Samvardhana Motherson International which gained 2.75 per cent. 

Bharat Forge reported strong Q4 earnings on Wednesday with its net profit soaring by 77.8 per cent to reach Rs 227.12 crore, compared to Rs 127.74 crore in the corresponding period last fiscal year. This notable growth can be attributed to increased sales volume during the period.

Hero MotoCorp also announced its financial performance for the fourth quarter (January – March 2024) of FY24. The world’s leading two-wheeler manufacturer reported its Revenue from Operations for the quarter, reaching Rs 9,519 crore, reflecting growth of 15 per cent compared to the previous year. 

The EBITDA margin for the quarter stood at 14.3 per cent, showcasing an improvement of 120 basis points year-on-year, driven by factors such as a favourable product mix, reduced commodity costs, increased savings, and strategic price adjustments.

The shares of Hero Moto Corp closed 146 points or 3.26 per cent up at Rs 4,624.35 apiece at BSE.