Closing Bell: Sensex, Nifty erase intra-day gains to end lower for 6th straigth session, Tata Motors, Bajaj Fin, Bajaj Finserv dip top losers

Closing Bell: Nifty ends July series below 11,300, Sensex settles in the red, Tata Motors dips 4.5%##Closing Bell: Nifty ends July series below 11,300, Sensex settles in the red, Tata Motors dips 4.5%

Indian equity indices, the BSE Sensex and NSE Nifty50, ended the volatile day on flat note with Nifty settling the July F&O series below 11,300 mark. The Sensex was down 16.67 points at 37830.98, while Nifty was down 9.50 points at 11261.80. The Nifty MidCap ended 0.40 percent higher, while the BSE MidCap was up more than half a percent. Tata Motors, Bajaj Finance, Bajaj Finserv, Coal India and JSW Steel were among major losers, while gainers were Vedanta, Cipla, Zee Entertainment, Sun Pharma and IndusInd Bank. Among sectors, metal, infra, auto and energy saw selling, while buying was seen in the IT and pharma counters.

Here are the main highlights and trends from the markets today##Here are the main highlights and trends from the markets today

-Market ends mixed with benchmark indices failing to hold intra-day gains. The Sensex and Nifty End in the red for sixth straight day. The Nifty closes below 11,300 for the second day to ends nearly 0.2 percent lower.

-Broader indices outperform; midcap index & nifty bank end in the green.

-Axis Bank and IndusInd Bank were major contributors to nifty bank’s gains, while Tata Motors ended as the top nifty loser ahead of Q1 results today.

-Bajaj Finance ends 6.5 percent off highs after cautious outlook by the management.

Indices fail to hold intra-day gains, end mixed with broader markets outperforming##Indices fail to hold intra-day gains, end mixed with broader markets outperforming

Ambuja Cement's net profit falls by 17.4% to Rs 412 crore, revenue at Rs 2978.3 crore##Ambuja Cement's net profit falls by 17.4% to Rs 412 crore, revenue at Rs 2978.3 crore

ICICI Prudential Life gains 7% on robust Q1 earnings; CLSA maintains 'buy' rating##ICICI Prudential Life gains 7% on robust Q1 earnings; CLSA maintains 'buy' rating

Shares of ICICI Prudential Life Insurance Company (ICICI Pru) rose nearly 7 percent on Thursday after the company reported 27 percent growth (YoY) in value of new business (VNB) in the June quarter (Q1FY20).

The stock rose as much as 6.7 percent to Rs 408.15 per share on the BSE. At 2:08 PM, the stock was trading 5 percent higher at Rs 402.70 as compared to 0.11 percent (41 points) rise in BSE Sensex at 37,889. READ MORE

Bajaj Finance drops 6% as more pain seen in loan book##Bajaj Finance drops 6% as more pain seen in loan book

Shares of Bajaj Finance dropped nearly 6 percent, hitting their one-month low of Rs 2,996.20, as more pain is seen in loan book of the non-banking lender after it reported high provisions and slippages in its June quarter earnings. The non-banking finance company has reportedly flagged potential credit risk in two-wheeler and digital products loans. The two-wheeler loans overdue for more than 30 days rose to 5.3 percent compared to 4.65 percent a quarter ago, while digital products loans overdue for more than 30 days rose to 1.46 percent from 1.01 percent a quarter ago. Tightened underwriting standards have led to 15-18 percent cut in loan disbursal for digital products and 10-12 percent cut in disbursal for small and medium-sized enterprises, and business to customers. Bajaj Finance's asset quality weakened slightly on a consolidated basis in June quarter as net non-performing asset stood at 0.64 percent as on June 30 compared to 0.63 percent a quarter ago. The company posted a 43 percent on-year rise in consolidated net profit for April-June at Rs 1195 crore, below analysts estimate. Shares of the company were down 4.1 percent at Rs 3,043.

Bajaj Finance Q1 profit jumps 43%##Bajaj Finance Q1 profit jumps 43%

Bajaj Finance's June quarter (Q1) consolidated net profit missed analyst expectations due to higher provisions, rising 43 percent year-on-year to Rs 1,195 crore, the highest ever. Net interest income during the quarter grew by 43 percent, higher-than-street-estimates, to Rs 3,695 crore compared to year-ago, with a massive 41 percent increase YoY in consolidated asset under management at Rs 1.29 lakh crore, the non-banking finance company said in its BSE filing.

Looking for opportunities in broader market at the moment, says Enam Holdings##Looking for opportunities in broader market at the moment, says Enam Holdings

Sridhar Sivaram, investment director at Enam Holdings, spoke to CNBC-TV18 about the current opportunities in the market and his views on the auto space. “Our broad belief is that this is a cyclical slowdown that we are seeing and we are seeing a lot of opportunities in the market. We think this quarter could possibly the worst,” Sivaram said on Thursday.

On the investment front, Sivaram said, “Saw a statistic recently that out of the roughly 2,800 stocks that trade in the market, 65 percent of them are down more than 50 percent and another 25 percent down between 25 percent and 50 percent. So even though the index is giving a different picture, there has been carnage in the broader market.” READ MORE

Q1 Earnings: This sector is expected to post a loss for the 8th straight quarter##Q1 Earnings: This sector is expected to post a loss for the 8th straight quarter

The telecom sector is expected to report a loss for the eighth straight quarter. For Q1FY20, the sector is expected to post a loss of Rs 4,200 crore, according to a report by Motilal Oswal. The brokerage expects the sector to be in loss for all the four quarters of FY20.

As per its report, the sector, on an overall basis, has reported a PAT of Rs 0 in the September quarter of FY18. Since then, there has been no recovery in the sector. In December quarter of FY18, the sector had a loss of Rs 300 crore, which rose to Rs 4,700 crore in the March quarter of FY19.

The sector reported a loss of Rs 200 crore in March quarter of FY18, Rs 1,200 crore in Q1FY19, Rs 4,800 crore in Q2FY19, and Rs 6,600 crore in Q3FY19, the report noted. READ MORE

Cox & Kings falls nearly 5% after it defaults on commercial papers worth Rs 174 crore##Cox & Kings falls nearly 5% after it defaults on commercial papers worth Rs 174 crore

The shares of Tours and travel services firm Cox & Kings declined to their lowest level since 2009 on Thursday after the company defaulted on the commercial papers worth Rs 174 crore. The stock fell 4.73 percent intraday to Rs 14.10 per scrip on the NSE. In the last one year, the company has eroded about 93 percent of investors' wealth. READ MORE

Bajaj Finance's Q1 net profit at Rs 1,124.7 crore Vs CNBC-TV18 poll of Rs 1,257.2 crore##Bajaj Finance's Q1 net profit at Rs 1,124.7 crore Vs CNBC-TV18 poll of Rs 1,257.2 crore

FACT jumps 14% as company gets government nod to sell 482-acre land##FACT jumps 14% as company gets government nod to sell 482-acre land

Shares of Fertilisers and Chemicals Travancore jumped 14 percent as the Cabinet approved the sale of 482 acres of land held by the Kochi-based company to the Kerala government. So far today, 1.3 million shares of the company have changed hands on NSE, higher than its six-month daily average of 157,382 shares. 

Taj GVK's Q1 net profit up 24.5% at Rs 5.6 crore against Rs 4.53 crore YoY##Taj GVK's Q1 net profit up 24.5% at Rs 5.6 crore against Rs 4.53 crore YoY