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Equity Alert: Patanjali Foods declines almost 2% ahead of Apr-Jun earnings

MUMBAI--0953 IST--Shares of Patanjali Foods fell nearly 2% Thursday ahead of the company's June quarter earnings. The stock is down for 13 of the last 19 sessions. At 0951 IST, shares of the company traded at INR 1,793, down 0.3%. So far Thursday, 98,789 shares of the company have changed hands on the NSE, higher than 53,972 shares traded during the same period on Wednesday.

Systematix Shares and Stocks (India) expects robust growth in the company's edible oil segment on the back of a weak base. It sees subdued demand for biscuits and a persisting declining trend in the foods segemnt. It also expects a steady sequential performance in the company's home and personal care segment.

The brokerage expects Patanjali's margins to contract 136 basis points on year and 103 bps on quarter to 4.3%. It sees margins in the edible oil segment coming off after easing of inflation. Home and personal care segment's margins are likely to expand on quarter on scale leverage, the brokerage said.

Systematix has a 'buy' rating on the stock with a target price of INR 2,055. Going ahead, the brokerage believes growth in the foods segment, acquired home and personal care business and rural demand will be key factors to monitor. (Simran Rede)

Equity Alert: Indices open higher amid high volatility; IT, pharma lead

MUMBAI--0940 IST--Benchmark indices opened higher amid greater volatility due to expiry of the weekly derivatives contract of the Nifty 50. The market also tracked record gains in international markets from the past two sessions. The market is making a cautious move amid rising geopolitical tensions, tariff threats, and uncertainty around a trade deal with the US, according to analysts.

At 0939 IST, the Nifty 50 and the BSE Sensex were 0.1% higher at 24637.15 points and 80622.50 points, respectively. Most information technology and health-related stocks supported the rise of the Nifty 50. Volatility in the market rose due to the expiry day of the futures and options contract of the Nifty 50. India VIX, the market's fear gauge, was at 12.3325, up 1.6%.

Broader market indices fell sharply shortly after outperforming their benchmark peers and being higher in early trade. All small-cap indices were higher for the fourth consecutive session in initial trade, while mid-cap indices were in the green at open for the second day. Later, these indices swung between gains and losses.

Sectoral indices were a mixed bag, with the Nifty Pharma gaining 0.8%, followed by the Nifty IT and Nifty Healthcare, which were 0.7% higher each. Traders are likely to have booked profits in metal stocks after gains in three consecutive sessions. The Nifty Metal had risen over 2% over this period but was down 1.1% Thursday, the worst hit sectoral index.

Muthoot Finance rose over 11?ter hitting a 10% upper band earlier. The stock surged after the non-banking finance company reported robust June quarter earnings that beat the Street's estimates. Pfizer was up nearly 6?ter the comapny's Apr-Jun net profit rose over 27% on year. Vishal Mega Mart was up following a 37% on-year rise in its Apr-Jun consolidated net profit. (Simran Rede)

Equity Alert: Mkt seen up Thu; Nifty 50 options expiry to cause volatility

MUMBAI--0820 IST--The domestic equity market is likely to rise more Thursday and volatility is expected in the final trading hour due to the weekly expiry of Nifty 50 options contracts. With the June quarter earnings season ending this week, investors' focus will shift to developments in global markets, particularly with respect to trade and tariffs. Even though concerns about the stock market's expensive valuations persist, analysts are not expecting a major correction. They said the market is unlikely to reach the 10-month lows it had hit in April.

Investors will closely watch the Russia–US presidential meeting scheduled in Alaska Friday amid hopes that the US will likely removal the additional 25% tariffs imposed on India over its purchase of Russian crude oil in case of a positive outcome from the meeting. India is a net importer of crude oil and Russia meets about 35% of its demand.

"We do not expect any impact on domestic inflation from US tariffs unless crude oil prices rise significantly from reduced Russian supplies," Nirmal Bang Institutional Equities said in its report. A $10 per barrel increase in crude prices typically pushes up inflation by about 20-25 basis points depending on the extent of pass through, it added.

On Wednesday, the Nifty 50 closed 0.5% higher at 24619.35 points and the BSE Sensex ended 0.4% higher at 80539.91 points. At 0756 IST, the GIFT Nifty August futures contract traded on the NSE International Exchange was at 24698.50 points, which is around 80 points higher than the Nifty 50's closing level Wednesday. The weekly expiry of Nifty 50's options contracts Thursday is likely to lead to some volatility during the final hours of trading. (Anjana Therese Antony)

Equity Alert: Asian markets mixed; Japan indices down after record high Wed

MUMBAI--0820 IST--After a significant jump Wednesday, Asian equity markets showed a mixed trend Thursday tracking US indices. Investors bet on a rate cut by the US Federal Reserve at its monetary policy meeting outcome next month. Japanese indices were the worst hit in the region after record highs for two consecutive days.

Heavy industry and electronics stocks led the declines in Japan's benchmark indices. A stronger yen also weighed on the market. In the early trade, the Nikkei 225 and the Topix were down more than 1?ch. Both the indices were in the red after six sessions of gains and rising around 6-7% over this period.

Australia's unemployment rate eased to 4.2% in July on a seasonally adjusted basis, in line with estimates of economists polled by Reuters. It was lower than the 4.3% unemployment rate in June, according to the data released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics on Thursday. Meanwhile, the employment print rose by 24,500 people in July, higher than a revised increase of 1,000 in June. At 0811 IST, the S&P/ASX 200 was 0.8% higher.

Among other indices in the region, South Korea's Kospi reversed its early gains and was down 0.2%. The FTSE Singapore Straits Times was down 0.4%, while the Chinese indices were higher, with the CSI 300 up 0.8% and Hong Kong's Hang Seng up 0.4%.

Following are the levels of key Asian indices at 0811 IST:

(Simran Rede)

Equity Alert: S&P, Nasdaq hit new highs Wed on better-than-view July CPI

MUMBAI--0746 IST--US benchmark indices closed higher Wednesday, with the S&P 500 and the NASDAQ Composite hitting fresh all-time closing highs for the second day. A better-than-expected inflation print for July boosted sentiment and raised hopes that the US Federal Reserve may ease interest rates.

Signs that US import tariffs have not fully penetrated into consumer prices came as a relief to investors this week as they await the impact of trade uncertainty on the economy. The CME Fedwatch tool showed a 93.8% probability of a 25-basis-point rate cut by the Fed in September. The central bank last lowered its key interest rates in December. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent Wednesday said he thought an aggressive 50-bps rate cut was possible, given the recent weak employment numbers, Reuters reported.

However, the gains in the equity market were not as sharp as on Tuesday due to weakness in some information technology stocks. Investors likely booked profits in stocks such as Nvidia, Alphabet, and Microsoft. "Valuations are elevated. I do think, though, at the end of the day, the key will be the delivery of earnings, and that's what we're seeing," Reuters quoted Katherine Bordlemay, co-head of client portfolio management, fundamental equities at Goldman Sachs Asset Management, as saying.

Following are the closing levels of US indices overnight:

(Simran Rede)

US$1 = INR 87.43

End

Edited by Avishek Dutta

All prices from National Stock Exchange, unless otherwise specified.

All percentage changes for share prices are rounded off to the nearest whole number; percentage changes for index values are rounded off to one decimal place.

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