Commenting on the derivative market outlook Anand James, Chief Market Strategist, Geojit Financial Services said Nifty weekly contract has highest open interest at 23000 for Calls and 22000 for Puts while monthly contracts have highest open interest at 23500 for Calls and 22500 for Puts. Highest new OI addition was seen at 22800 for Calls and 22150 for Puts in weekly and at 23500 for Calls and 21500 for Puts in monthly contracts.

“FIIs increased their future index long position holdings by 30.85%, decrease future index shorts by 7.51% and in index options by 15.42% decrease in Call longs, 13.28% decrease in Call short, 30.51% decrease in Put longs and 29.03% decrease in Put shorts,” added James.

Nuvama Institutional Equities has made significant adjustments to its stance on Kotak Mahindra Bank, downgrading it from ‘Buy’ to ‘Reduce’ while slashing its share price target from Rs 2,095 to Rs 1,530. This revision comes in the wake of recent developments within the bank and concerns surrounding its future trajectory.

The report indicates that recent negative events, coupled with high attrition rates, have made the future outlook for Kotak Mahindra Bank uncertain. This sentiment reflects the challenges the bank currently faces in navigating its path forward.

Senior bankers suggest that regulatory actions, such as the recent ban imposed by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), could potentially set Kotak Mahindra Bank back by one to two years compared to its more aggressive competitors. This regulatory setback is seen as a significant hurdle for the bank to overcome.

Nuvama Institutional Equities has adjusted its valuation metrics for Kotak Mahindra Bank, lowering its multiple sharply to 1.7x BV FY26 from 2.3x. Additionally, the report values the bank’s subsidiaries at Rs 560. This revised valuation strategy reflects the challenges and uncertainties surrounding the bank’s future performance.

Despite the recent correction in the bank’s stock price, Nuvama Institutional Equities anticipates that Kotak Mahindra Bank will continue to underperform its peers in the foreseeable future. 

Federal Bank’s share surged over 4% to intra-day high of Rs 170.30 despite the bank’s announcement of a standalone net profit of Rs 906.30 crore for the quarter ended March 31, 2024. This marked an 11% decrease on a quarter-on-quarter (QoQ) basis compared to the Rs 1,006.74 crore reported in Q3FY24. Additionally, the private lender declared a final dividend of Rs 1.20 per share for the financial year 2023-24.

Courtesy: NSE

BPCL, Power Grid, Asian Paints, Bajaj Auto, and Tata Steel were the top gainers in the Nifty 50. While Kotak Bank, Bharti Airtel, Tata Consumer Products, Divi’s Lab, and HDFC Life Insurance were the key laggards in the Nift 50 on May 2.

Shakti Pumps surged 5% to reach the upper circuit at Rs 2080.40 on Thursday on the NSE. This marks the third consecutive session where the stock price has been locked in the upper circuit. The upward momentum has been driven by the company’s robust Q4 performance, which was reported a few days ago. As a result, the stock has climbed more than 15% over the past three trading sessions.

Havells India’s share price surged over 2% on Thursday following the company’s announcement of a 24% profit increase in the fourth quarter of fiscal year 2024. Havells India shares soared by as much as 2.52% to reach an intra-day high of Rs 1,706.85 per share on the NSE.

Prabhudas Lilladhar’s latest report on Havells India highlights the company’s Q4FY24 results, indicating robust growth in its Electrical Consumer Durables (ECD) segment and a positive turnaround for the Lloyd division.

The report maintains an ‘Accumulate’ rating for Havells India, with a revised target price of Rs 1,774 (previously Rs 1,681) based on a Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) valuation. This target price implies a price-to-earnings ratio of 54x FY26 earnings per share.

However, the report mentions a downward revision in earnings estimates for FY25 and FY26 by 6.4% and 8.8%, respectively. This adjustment primarily stems from margin corrections due to increased advertising and employee expenses, as well as fluctuations in raw material prices.

Havells India achieved healthy revenue growth in Q4FY24, particularly driven by better-than-expected performance in the ECD and Cables segments, which saw year-on-year growth rates of 21.5% and 14.1%, respectively. In contrast, the Lloyd segment reported softer revenue growth at 5.4% year-on-year.

The company’s outlook remains positive, with expectations of continued growth momentum in the ECD segment due to increased summer-led demand and a pickup in real estate activity. Havells plans to pursue growth while maintaining profitability in the Lloyd segment, aiming to sustain its market share.

ICICI Bank has clarified that the reports about the private lender’s MD & CEO, Sandeep Bakshi’s willingness to step down is baseless.  “This is with regard to an article carried in The Morning Context, a news portal, with the headline “ICICI Bank in a tizzy after CEO move comes out of left field”,” said ICICI Bank in an exchange filing. The Morning Context in the article quoting three people stated that Sandeep Bakshi indicated he wants to step down from his position. The shares of ICICI Bank trade marginally lower by 0.33% at Rs 1,146.55.

“The Bank Nifty witnessed a volatile trading session during the expiry day, with bulls dominating the first half and bears taking control in the second half. Although the index fell short of reaching the 50,000 mark, the overall sentiment remains bullish. Dips in the index should be seen as buying opportunities, especially with strong support noted around the 49,000 mark, where the highest open interest lies on the put side,” said Kunal Shah, Senior Technical & Derivative Analyst at LKP Securities.

Rail Vikas Nigam shares surged over 1% to reach an intra-day high of Rs 291.85 following news that the government-owned railway firm has emerged as the lowest bidder for a project valued at Rs 390.97 crore from Eastern Railway. The project entails the construction of the Sitarampur bypass line within the Asansol division of Eastern Railway.

Commenting on the Technical outlook of Nifty Rupak De, Senior Technical Analyst, LKP Securities, said Nifty witnessed selling pressure as it encountered resistance near the previous swing high, resulting in a weak closing. Other indicators such as the 20-day Simple Moving Average (SMA) and the 50-day SMA are positioned below the index value, suggesting that the ongoing positive trend remains intact. The Relative Strength Index (RSI) also indicates a bullish crossover. Over the next few days, the trend in the headline index might remain sideways unless it breaks above the all-time high of 22783. On the downside, immediate support is placed at 22500, below which the index might decline further.

Godrej Group stocks, such as Godrej Industries, Godrej Consumer Products, and Godrej Agrovet, saw gains of over 1-5% in early trading on Thursday following the announcement that the Godrej family had reached an agreement to divide the conglomerate into two branches.

BPCL, Mahindra & Mahindra, SBI Life Insurance, Bajaj FinServ, and Power Grid Corp are the top gainers on NSE Nifty 50 index whereas the top laggards include Kotak Mahindra Bank, Hindalco Industries, Maruti Suzuki India, Bharti Airtel, and Divis Lab.

The NSE Nifty 50 opens down by 0.16% at 22,567.85, while the BSE Sensex drops 0.12% to 74,391.12 in the opening trade.

After a two-day meeting of the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC), the US Federal Reserve announced today that it will keep the benchmark interest rates unchanged at 5.25% – 5.50% for the sixth consecutive meeting. This decision is in line with what was anticipated by analysts on Wall Street.

The NSE has added Biocon and Vodafone Idea in F&O on May 2, 2024.

Foreign institutional investors (FII) bought shares worth net Rs 1,071.9 crore, while domestic institutional investors (DII) mopped shares worth net Rs 1,429.1 crore on April 30, 2024, according to the provisional data available on the NSE.

WTI crude oil prices are currently trading at $79.19, showing a 0.23% increase, while Brent crude prices stand at $83.64, reflecting a 0.24% rise, as of Thursday morning.

The US Dollar Index (DXY), which gauges the dollar’s strength against a selection of six foreign currencies, experienced a decline of 0.53%, reaching 105.77 in trading.

Following a two-day session of the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC), the US Federal Reserve declared today that it will maintain the benchmark interest rates at 5.25% – 5.50% for the sixth consecutive meeting. This decision aligns with the expectations of analysts on Wall Street.

According to Bloomberg, the US stock market experienced a downturn following the release of recent economic data indicating a significant drop in consumer confidence and ongoing wage pressures leading up to the Federal Reserve’s decision. The Nasdaq Composite, primarily composed of tech stocks, concluded the day down by 52.34 points or 0.33% at 15,605.48. Similarly, the S&P 500 decreased by 17.30 points or 0.34% to 5,018.39, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average saw a modest increase of 87.37 points or 0.23% to reach 37,903.29.