Shares of <keyword id="6365619" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="hindustan-unilever" source="Orion">Hindustan Unilever</keyword> Ltd declined over 4 per cent in morning trade on Friday as investors preferred to desert the counter amid concerns over increase in royalty and central services arrangement fee to its parent <keyword id="345805" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="unilever-group" source="Orion">Unilever group</keyword>. The stock fell 4.15 per cent to Rs 2,540.05 apiece on the BSE. At the NSE, it went lower by 4.29 per cent to Rs 2,536.05 apiece. The stock was the biggest laggard among the <keyword id="6484188" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="sensex" source="Orion">Sensex</keyword> and <keyword id="6354813" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="nifty" source="Orion">Nifty</keyword> pack. FMCG major Hindustan <keyword id="45009" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="unilever" source="Orion">Unilever</keyword> Ltd on Thursday reported a 7.9 per cent increase in its consolidated net profit at Rs 2,481 crore for the third quarter ended December 31, 2022. The company, which had posted a net profit of Rs 2,300 crore in the October-December quarter of the previous fiscal, said its board has approved a new royalty and central services arrangement with Unilever Group that will see an increase in the fees for the same to 3.45 per cent of turnover from 2.65 per cent in FY22. Hindustan Unilever on Thursday said its board has approved an increase in royalty and central services arrangement fee to its parent Unilever group for getting technology, trademark licenses and services. "HUL's December quarter report was broadly on expected lines but the Street for now is more focused on estimating the damage that occasional tinkering of royalty rates could do to the intrinsic value of the stock," according to a research report by JM Financial Institutional Securities Limited. Its consolidated total income during the quarter under review rose 16.35 per cent to Rs 15,707 crore against Rs 13,499 crore a year ago, Hindustan Unilever Ltd (HUL) said in a regulatory filing. SEE ALSO: <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/finance/news/rupee-gains-21-paise-to-81-15-against-us-dollar/articleshow/97165342.cms">Rupee gains 21 paise to 81.15 against US dollar</a> <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/stock-market/news/ril-hul-pvr-jsw-steel-among-stocks-in-focus/articleshow/97158841.cms">Sensex, Nifty50 to open on a tepid note tracking Asian markets: RIL, HUL, PVR, JSW Steel among stocks in focus</a>

Hindustan Unilever shares fall over 4%

<ul><li>Oil-to-data giant <keyword id="10926" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="reliance" source="Orion">Reliance</keyword> Industries reported a net profit of ₹15,792 crore in Q3, slightly above analyst estimates. </li><li>Revenue contribution from the oil-to-chemical segment, which is Reliance’s bread and butter, continued to decline as a percentage of overall revenue for the third consecutive quarter to 65.6%. </li><li>On the other hand, its consumer segments, <keyword id="58448" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="reliance-retail" source="Orion">Reliance Retail</keyword> and Jio led growth during the quarter, with a top line growth of 18.6% and 20.9% YoY, respectively. </li></ul>Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Industries reported a net profit of ₹15,792 crore in Q3, slightly above<a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/corporates/news/ril-q3-to-be-a-mixed-bag-muted-growth-in-o2c-robust-retail-and-jio-performance/articleshow/97094061.cms"> analyst estimates</a>. Reliance’s net profit was up only marginally during the quarter compared to the corresponding quarter last year. Also finance costs and depreciation was higher in Q3FY23. The company’s performance during the quarter was primarily led by the consumer segments of retail and telecom, while the oil-to-chemical segment remained under pressure due to weak demand and downstream margin pressures. Reliance’s total revenue in Q3 stood at ₹2.2 lakh crore, up 5.1% YoY, beating <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/corporates/news/ril-q3-to-be-a-mixed-bag-muted-growth-in-o2c-robust-retail-and-jio-performance/articleshow/97094061.cms">analyst projections of ₹2.13 lakh crore</a>. On a sequential basis, the revenue fell 5.3% while profit increased 15.6%. Reliance’s Q3 FY22 profit was boosted by ₹2,836 crore on account of an exceptional item, namely profit on sale of shale gas. Without this exceptional gain, Reliance’s Q3 FY23 net profit would be up 0.5% when compared to Q3 FY22. Reliance also announced a fundraising of up to ₹20,000 crore through non-convertible debentures, to be issued via a private placement. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Weak demand and downstream margin pressures weigh on O2C business" comment="subhead" text="Weak demand and downstream margin pressures weigh on O2C business">Weak demand and downstream margin pressures weigh on O2C business</cmsannotation> Reliance’s bread and butter, the oil-to-chemicals (O2C) business, continued to witness margin pressures and weak demand. “Downstream chemical products witnessed margin pressure with excess supply and relatively weak regional demand. Our focus remains on operating safely and reliably producing vital fuel and materials for consumers,” said <keyword id="3820" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="mukesh-ambani" source="Orion">Mukesh Ambani</keyword>, chairman and managing director, Reliance Industries. The O2C segment’s contribution to Reliance’s overall revenue continued to decline – falling to 65.6% in Q3, from 68.5% in Q2, and 72% in Q1. Reliance’s O2C business’ revenue declined when compared to the previous quarter – at ₹1,44,630 crore, it fell short of its Q2 revenue by 9.5%. The impact of weak demand and downstream margin pressures was visible in the O2C segment’s earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA), which increased by only 2.9% YoY to ₹13,926 crore, while the segment revenue increased 10.3% to ₹1,44,630 crore during this period. Also weighing on the O2C EBITDA was special additional excise duty, which accounted for ₹1,898 crore during Q3. Reliance Industries’ Q2 in numbers: <table style="border-width: initial; border-style: none;"></colgroup><tbody><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Particulars </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Q3 FY23 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Q2 FY23 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Q3 FY22 </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;background-color:#d9d9d9;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Revenue </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;background-color:#d9d9d9;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">₹2,20,592 crore </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;background-color:#d9d9d9;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">₹2,32,863 crore </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;background-color:#d9d9d9;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">₹2,09,823 crore </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Net profit </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">₹15,792 crore </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">₹13,656 crore </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">₹18,549 crore* </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;background-color:#d9d9d9;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Net margin </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;background-color:#d9d9d9;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">7.2% </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;background-color:#d9d9d9;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">5.9% </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;background-color:#d9d9d9;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">8.8% </td></tr></tbody></table> Source: Company reports | *includes an exceptional gain of ₹2,836 crore Finance costs continue to put a lid on the company’s overall performance, with an increase of 36.5% YoY to ₹5,201 crore – something that a previous<a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/corporates/news/tatas-to-ambanis-adanis-and-birlas-fortunes-of-these-high-debt-companies-could-change-after-rate-hikes/articleshow/92126846.cms"> Business Insider India report highlighted</a> could soon become a problem for high-debt companies. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Retail business continues to beat inflation woes" comment="subhead" text="Retail business continues to beat inflation woes">Retail business continues to beat inflation woes</cmsannotation> Reliance’s retail segment <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/corporates/news/reliance-retails-q3-net-profit-up-6-2-at-2400-crore-finance-costs-depreciation-weigh/articleshow/97179758.cms">delivered</a> healthy growth even as inflation continues to be a problem for many. The retail segment reported a 18.6% YoY growth in revenue to ₹60,096 crore, while its segment net profit grew 6.2%. Overall, though, since the retail segment’s revenues surged both sequentially and YoY, the EBITDA was higher in absolute terms at ₹4,773 crore. “Retail business had another quarter of strong progress with more Indians choosing to shop at Reliance Retail stores,” Ambani added. Reliance also announced that the retail segment’s area of operation has increased to 60.2 million square feet, up from 40 million square feet last year. The company’s total operational stores stood at 17,225 at the end of the quarter. Overall, Reliance recorded total footfalls of 201 million during the December quarter across all formats and geographies, which is its highest ever. On a YoY basis, the footfalls increased 25.6%. During the quarter, Reliance Retail launched a new brand called Independence and also acquired beverage brand Sosya, and confectionery brand Lotus Chocolate. Its digital efforts via JioMart also witnessed a ramp up during the quarter, with the overall catalogue increasing 71% on a sequential basis, while its seller base increased 83% during this period. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Jio delivers modest growth in profit, ARPU and subscribers" comment="subhead" text="Jio delivers modest growth in profit, ARPU and subscribers">Jio delivers modest growth in profit, ARPU and subscribers</cmsannotation> The company’s telecom arm, Reliance Jio <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/telecom/news/reliance-jios-net-profit-up-3-2-sequentially-at-4881-crore-in-q3-on-better-subscriber-mix/articleshow/97179677.cms">posted</a> a modest 3.2% sequential increase in its net profit after a moderate September quarter, in line with<a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/telecom/news/airtel-reliance-jio-and-vodafone-idea-q3-earnings-preview-tariff-hikes-a-key-trigger/articleshow/96796094.cms"> analyst expectations</a>. The largest telco in India added 5.3 million new subscribers to its network, taking the total to 432.9 million subscribers, in line with<a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/corporates/news/ril-q3-to-be-a-mixed-bag-muted-growth-in-o2c-robust-retail-and-jio-performance/articleshow/97094061.cms"> analyst expectations</a>. Its average revenue per user saw a moderate increase of 0.6% to ₹178.2 from ₹177.2 in the previous quarter, largely on account of a better subscriber mix, according to the company. SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/corporates/news/hul-q3-net-profit-rises-12-yoy-to-2505-crore-rural-slowdown-bottoming-out/articleshow/97138811.cms">HUL Q3 net profit rises 12% YoY to ₹2,505 crore – rural slowdown ‘bottoming out’, says company</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/stock-market/news/adani-enterprises-fpo-20000-crore-green-hydrogen-ambitions-and-debt-repayment/articleshow/97123733.cms">Adani Enterprises’ ₹20,000 crore FPO opens on January 27, will fuel its green hydrogen ambitions, repay debt</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/corporates/news/ril-q3-to-be-a-mixed-bag-muted-growth-in-o2c-robust-retail-and-jio-performance/articleshow/97094061.cms">RIL’s Q3 to be a mixed bag: Muted growth seen in O2C, robust performance projected for retail and Jio</a>

RIL’s Q3 net profit stays flat at ₹15,792 crore – retail and Jio deliver, while O2C drags due to weak demand

Benchmark equity indices Sensex and <keyword id="6354813" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="nifty" source="Orion">Nifty</keyword> closed lower for a second straight day on Tuesday due to selling in FMCG, metal and auto shares ahead of the <keyword id="30067" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="rbi" source="Orion">RBI</keyword> monetary policy. The 30-share <keyword id="35140" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="bse" source="Orion">BSE</keyword> barometer declined further by 220.86 points or 0.37 per cent to close at 60,286.04, as 22 of its constituents ended in the red. The index opened flat amid mixed global trends. It moved in a range of 60,655.14 to 60,063.49 in the day. The broader Nifty of the National Stock Exchange fell by 43.10 points or 0.24 per cent to settle at 17,721.50, with 31 of its scrips ending in the red. The index touched a high of 17,811.15 and a low of 17,652.55 during the session. Profit-taking in the FMCG and auto majors was weighing on the sentiment while buying in select heavyweights in banking and financials capped the fall, analysts said. "Sentiments in the domestic market were hammered by bears that dominated the US market post the release of strong jobs data. Global markets are currently driven by central bank policies and the surge in bond yields in expectation of more rate actions," said Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Financial Services. A recovery was seen in the second half of the day as US futures inched higher as investors await US Fed Chief Jerome Powell's speech, Nair added. Among Sensex stocks, Tata Steel fell the most by 5.23 per cent after posting weak financial results for the December quarter. The steel maker slipped into the red in the third quarter due to a drop in revenue and higher cost. ITC, <keyword id="44642" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="sun-pharma" source="Orion">Sun Pharma</keyword>, Maruti, M&amp;M, Tata Motors, HCL Tech, Wipro, Infosys, HUL, Bharti Airtel and Reliance were among the major losers. Banking stocks gained ahead of the RBI monetary policy announcement on Wednesday. Kotak Bank rose the most by 1.59 per cent, followed by IndusInd Bank (1.22 per cent), SBI (0.32 per cent) and HDFC Bank (0.10 per cent). Bajaj Finance, Bajaj Finserv, L&amp;T, SBI, TCS and HDFC Bank also closed higher. "Participants are closely eyeing the outcome of the RBI meet for cues. However, indications are pointing toward prevailing choppiness to continue until Nifty decisively breaks the range of 17,550-17,900 levels," Ajit Mishra, VP - Technical Research, Religare Broking Ltd said. Adani group stocks, which have been hammered following the Hindenburg Research report alleging stock manipulation and accounting fraud by the Gautam Adani-led group, ended their decline. Adani group flagship Adani Enterprises rose by 14.63 per cent after hitting the upper circuit during the day. The stock was the lead gainer among Nifty50 stocks. Adani Ports and Special Economic Zones (APSEZ) advanced 1.33 per cent despite a decline in profit for the December quarter. APSEZ CEO and whole-time director Karan Adani said the company is considering a total loan repayment and prepayment of around Rs 5,000 crore, which will significantly improve the net debt to EBITDA ratio. Adani Wilmar gained 4.99 per cent, ACC rose 1.32 per cent and Ambuja Cement increased 1.12 per cent. Adani Green Energy, which posted two-fold growth in Q3 profit, declined by 5 per cent. Adani Transmission, Adani Total Gas and Adani Power also dropped. In the broader market, BSE Midcap edged up 0.02 per cent while Smallcap index declined by 0.16 per cent. Among sectoral indices, the BSE metal index fell the most by 1.89 per cent, followed by telecom (1.31 per cent), Utilities 1.15 per cent, FMCG (1.13 per cent) and Auto (0.92 per cent). BSE Bankex gained 0.29 per cent, Capital goods rose by 0.49 per cent and <keyword id="6384816" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="realty" source="Orion">Realty</keyword> by 0.77 per cent. Global stock markets were mixed as investors looked ahead to a speech by the Federal Reserve chief for clues to interest rate plans. In Asia, the Nikkei 225 in Tokyo declined 0.1 per cent, while Shanghai Composite Index rose 0.3 per cent, and the Hang Seng in Hong Kong advanced 0.6 per cent. In Europe, the FTSE 100 in London gained 0.3 per cent, while Frankfurt's DAX fell 0.4 per cent, and the CAC 40 in Paris lost 0.3 per cent. Foreign portfolio investors were net sellers on Monday, offloading shares worth Rs 1,218.14 crore, according to data available with the BSE. The international Brent crude futures rose 0.79 per cent to USD 81.78 per barrel. SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/stock-market/news/flagship-adani-enterprises-leads-rally-in-adani-group-shares-on-tuesday/articleshow/97682620.cms">Adani Enterprises leads rally as the group adds ₹46,079 crore in marketcap on Tuesday</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/corporates/news/adani-transmission-reports-78-rise-in-q3-net-profit-to-475-crore-on-one-time-income/articleshow/97650165.cms">Adani Transmission reports 78% rise in Q3 net profit to ₹475 crore on one-time income</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/telecom/news/vodafone-idea-shares-hit-25-upper-circuit-after-govt-agrees-to-convert-16133-cr-dues-into-equity/articleshow/97643006.cms">Vodafone Idea shares hit 25% upper circuit after govt agrees to convert ₹16,133 cr dues into equity</a>

Sensex, Nifty decline for 2nd day on selling in FMCG, steel stocks

<ul><li><keyword id="430602" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="justdial" source="Orion">JustDial</keyword>’s operating revenue declined 6% last quarter compared to the same time period last year.</li><li>This comes as a surprise as the festive season of October-December quarter is usually the best time for any consumer-facing business.</li><li>While the recent management change after Reliance acquisition may be one reason for the recent decline, over-diversification may be another.</li></ul>While many other digital businesses like Zomato, Nykaa and Paytm have recovered from the impact of COVID-19 a long time ago, JustDial seems stuck. Market watchers say it could be because the app is trying to be Google, without the resources to be one. Once again, JustDial's quarterly revenue declined on a year-on-year basis, which is a cause of concern since October-December quarter is usually the best time for any consumer-facing business. It is the time when customers are on a spending spree because of the festive season of Diwali and Christmas. However, the decline in JustDial’s operating revenue came as a surprise, especially when the company seems to offer every service that can be sold online. The stock was down over 3% on January 19, the first trading day after the earnings were reported. <div type="image" title="JustDial can’t beat Google and it should stop trying to, say analysts" msid="89011002" hostid="261"></div> From food to flight tickets, from delivery services to at-home beauty services, you name it and JustDial would have a seller on its platform. Yet, the revenue declined. Market watchers say, being a jack of all trades may not be working well for this 26-year-old company. Neha Khanna, director at Value Prolific (ValPro) Capital, tells Business Insider that JustDial has spread itself too thin and it has made it susceptible to competition from all sides. <div type="image" title="JustDial can’t beat Google and it should stop trying to, say analysts" msid="89010548" hostid="261"></div> JustDial — which offers at least 14 different services — is currently in competition with all the big newage digital businesses one can think of. Few examples include Paytm, BharatPe, Google Pay, PhonePe and others for its payments/fintech business, BigBasket for its grocery delivery business, Zomato and Swiggy for food delivery business, and Urban Company for at-home services vertical. <div type="image" title="JustDial can’t beat Google and it should stop trying to, say analysts" msid="89013326" hostid="261"></div> This stands true that JustDial is a discovery business, therefore, it simply has to sign up vendors/professionals willing to offer the service. It is still not doing the company any favour. “Google has taken away their core offering [of services discovery], and other players are emerging much stronger in different verticals,” Khanna says while explaining the knots in JustDial’s business. Yash Gupta, Equity Research Analyst at AngelOne, tells Business Insider that the nominal decline in JustDial’s business in the third quarter could also be attributed to the recent<a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/corporates/news/just-dial-share-price-surge-as-mukesh-ambani-is-looking-to-buy-just-dial/articleshow/84432450.cms"> management change</a> after the Reliance Retail acquisition. There is usually a dull period for the stock due to cleaning of the balance sheet, he notes. But that could only be a part of the reason. Gupta explains that JustDial is a ‘pull’ sort of business model, where they need to go to customers and get them to start paying for its services. Meanwhile, other companies — such as Zomato, Swiggy, and even Google — where customers come on their own. This becomes the first challenge for the company. Secondly, the failure of JD Mart — the business-to-business (B2B) ecommerce marketplace of JustDial — to do anything substantial in the three quarters has further disappointed the people who keep track of this space, Gupta added. JD Mart competes with IndiaMart, which has been <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/stock-market/news/indiamart-share-price-has-gone-up-five-times-in-just-the-last-18-months-here-is-why/articleshow/86058084.cms">reporting higher revenue </a>than JustDial for the past two years by focusing on B2B ecommerce. The crux of all these problems is over-diversification that prevents it from going big in one segment, Gupta says. They would have done much better if they focused on one vertical, he adds. ALSO WATCH: A ₹3,000 crore fund manager says even conglomerates in India struggle the moment they have more than two verticals ⁠⁠ <div type="Youtube" id="kSf5f3gXjKg" title="A ₹3,000-crore fund manager explains why he won&amp;#39;t buy RIL, why he sold ITC and bought HDFC Life" thumbUrl="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/kSf5f3gXjKg/mqdefault.jpg"></div> The common thread running in what both Valpro and AngelOne analysts are saying is the fact that both have not been able to figure out why Reliance decided to acquire JustDial. “I don’t really see any value proposition for Reliance in JustDial,'' says ValPro’s Khanna. Things can become clear one Reliance unfolds its plan for JustDial, AngelOne’s Gupta adds. <div type="image" title="JustDial can’t beat Google and it should stop trying to, say analysts" msid="89013331" hostid="261"></div> SEE ALSO <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/startups/news/cred-expands-esops-pool-to-500-million-employees-can-own-12-5-of-fintech-startup/articleshow/89010053.cms">CRED says that all its employees get stock options, expands pool to $500 million</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/stock-market/news/hul-bajaj-auto-lampt-infotech-and-other-hot-stocks-on-january-20/slidelist/89008387.cms">HUL, Bajaj Auto, L&amp;T Infotech and other hot stocks on January 20</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/india/news/indias-daily-covid-19-count-surpasses-three-lakh-after-eight-months/articleshow/89009476.cms">India’s daily COVID-19 count surpasses three lakh after eight months, Omicron tally climbs to 9,287</a>

JustDial can’t beat Google and it should stop trying to, say analysts

Equity benchmark <keyword id="6484188" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="sensex" source="Orion">Sensex</keyword> rallied over 300 points in opening trade to hit a fresh lifetime high on Tuesday, tracking gains in index heavyweights ICICI Bank, HDFC Bank and M&amp;M despite a weak trend in global markets. After touching a record of 60,621.72, the 30-share Sensex was trading 261.17 points or 0.43% higher at 60,545.48. Similarly, the <keyword id="6354813" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="nifty" source="Orion">Nifty</keyword> surged 97.75 points or 0.54% to a new intra-day peak of 18,089.70. M&amp;M was the top gainer in the Sensex pack, rallying over 3%, followed by <keyword id="66427" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="powergrid" source="Orion">PowerGrid</keyword>, <keyword id="6354287" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="bharti-airtel" source="Orion">Bharti Airtel</keyword>, L&amp;T, ICICI Bank and Axis Bank. On the other hand, <keyword id="6356830" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="nestle-india" source="Orion">Nestle India</keyword>, HUL, HCL Tech, SBI and <keyword id="6357147" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="tata-steel" source="Orion">Tata Steel</keyword> were among the laggards. In the previous session, the 30-share index ended 148.53 points or 0.25% higher at record 60,284.31, and Nifty rose 46 points or 0.26% to its fresh closing peak of 17,991.95. Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) were net sellers in the capital market as they offloaded shares worth Rs 278.32 crore on Tuesday, as per exchange data. Domestic equities look to be good as of now, said Binod Modi Head-Strategy at Reliance Securities. “Sharp contraction in CPI print at 4.35% for September despite elevated oil prices and sustained IIP growth (11.5% growth for August) certainly offer comfort. We also believe that 2QFY22 corporate earnings are going to be quite crucial for the market,” he stated. Retail inflation fell to a five-month low of 4.35% in September from 7.27% in the year-ago period as prices of vegetables and other items declined. Industrial production grew 11.9% in August mainly due to a low-base effect and good performance by manufacturing, mining and power sectors that surpassed the pre-COVID level. In the US, the equity market contracted for the third consecutive day in a choppy trading day ahead of crucial inflation data and September quarter earnings. Elsewhere in Asia, bourses in Shanghai and Tokyo were trading with losses in mid-session deals, while Seoul was positive. Meanwhile, international oil benchmark Brent crude fell 0.31% to $83.16 per barrel. SEE ALSO: <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/advertising/ad-tech/news/inmobi-acquires-uk-based-appsumer-which-helps-picsart-miniclip-with-its-digital-marketing-efforts/articleshow/86988865.cms">InMobi acquires UK-based Appsumer, which helps Picsart, Miniclip with its digital marketing efforts</a> <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/news/android-phones-constantly-send-data-from-pre-installed-apps-even-if-theyve-never-been-used-before/articleshow/86988368.cms">Research reveals Android phones constantly send data from pre-installed apps even if they’ve never been used before</a>

Sensex rallies over 300 points, Nifty near 18,100 level — M&M, PowerGrid, Bharti Airtel, L&T, ICICI Bank and Axis Bank top gainers

<ul><li><keyword id="6357149" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="hdfc-bank" source="Orion">HDFC Bank</keyword> and <keyword id="45123" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="hdfc" source="Orion">HDFC</keyword> are bleeding investor wealth, wiping out over INR 2.5 lakh crore over the past 15 days.</li><li>Earlier this month, the HDFC Bank-HDFC merger was announced in a bid to create a financial behemoth in the country.</li><li>However, after a modest March quarter, analysts have expressed caution.</li><li>We find out what is the reason behind the massive selloff in HDFC Bank and HDFC.</li></ul>HDFC and HDFC Bank, two pillars of India’s financial sector have seen a meltdown unlike anything before – a massive selloff that has wiped out over ₹2.5 lakh crore investor wealth in the span of two weeks. <div type="image" title="HDFC Bank 01_01_22 to 19_04_22." msid="90933515" hostid="261" caption="&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;HDFC Bank share price in 2022&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;"></div> HDFC is India’s largest housing finance company, and prior to the sell-off, it was amongst the top 10 in terms of valuation, among the likes of Reliance Industries, TCS, HDFC Bank, HUL, State Bank of India, among others. The sell-off has kicked it out of the list, two weeks after the announcement of the HDFC Bank-HDFC merger. <div type="image" title="HDFC, HDFC Bank market cap post merger market cap April 19 2022." msid="90933532" hostid="261" caption="&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;HDFC group companies&amp;#39; market capitalisation after merger and today&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;"></div> It is worth noting that immediately after the merger news was announced, HDFC Bank and HDFC shares both surged by as much as 14%, <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/stock-market/news/hdfc-bank-hdfc-merger-news-makes-shareholders-richer-by-over-1-lakh-crore/articleshow/90638471.cms">adding ₹1 lakh crore in investor wealth</a>. <div type="Article" hostid="261" msid="90638471" title="HDFC Bank-HDFC merger news makes shareholders richer by over ₹1 lakh crore" mstype="2" mssubtype="0"></div> <div type="image" title="HDFC 01_01_22 to 19_04_22." msid="90933542" hostid="261" caption="&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;HDFC share price in 2022&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;"></div> For a while, HDFC Bank and HDFC together were the <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/corporates/news/hdfc-bank-hdfc-together-the-second-largest-company-in-india-beating-tcs/articleshow/90635725.cms">second largest company</a> in India by market capitalisation, beating TCS and only behind Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Industries. <div type="Article" hostid="261" msid="90635725" title="HDFC twins merger: HDFC Bank, HDFC together the second largest company in India, beating TCS" mstype="2" mssubtype="0"></div> However, over the next 15 days, those gains were not only wiped out, but shares of both the companies also fell by over 18%. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Why are HDFC Bank and HDFC shares falling?" comment="subhead" text="Why are HDFC Bank and HDFC shares falling?">Why are HDFC Bank and HDFC shares falling?</cmsannotation> The HDFC twin merger was expected to help both the companies leverage each other’s expertise in their respective industries, creating a behemoth of the Indian financial sector. Instead, after the initial excitement about the merger, both the companies have experienced a selloff that refuses to slow down. One of the reasons that have contributed to the selloff is HDFC Bank’s modest earnings in the March quarter. On the surface, HDFC Bank’s numbers look good – net profit surged 23% year-on-year to ₹10,055 crore, while net interest income grew by a healthy 10.2% to ₹18,873 crore. However, on scratching the surface, there are some areas that could spark concerns. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Increase in higher risk assets" comment="subhead" text="Increase in higher risk assets">Increase in higher risk assets</cmsannotation> Asset quality, more specifically, the risk-weighted assets which carry a 100% risk, grew by 25% in the past two years. Assets with less than 100% risk grew by over 50%. Likewise, exposures with over 100% risk grew by nearly a third. Risk-weighted assets are those for which a bank needs to set aside adequate capital to reduce the risk of insolvency. A rise in risk-weighted assets means that HDFC Bank will have to set aside more funds than before. This reduces the amount of money it can use for its banking activities. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Decrease in retail loans" comment="subhead" text="Decrease in retail loans">Decrease in retail loans</cmsannotation> Another reason behind HDFC Bank’s modest growth in net interest income is the decline in retail loans’ share in the overall loans issued by the bank. Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, the share of retail loans in HDFC Bank’s loan portfolio was 55%. This has now come down to 39%. <div type="image" title="HDFC Bank loan portfolio mix." msid="90933556" hostid="261" caption="&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;HDFC Bank loan portfolio mix&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;"></div> <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="What are the analysts saying?" comment="subhead" text="What are the analysts saying?">What are the analysts saying?</cmsannotation> Instead of being excited by the merger news, analysts have expressed caution and are circumspect about the merger going through in a smooth manner. <div type="javascript" title="Custom" contenttype=""><cdata><![CDATA[]]></cdata></div> “Key risks are slower-than-expected credit growth amid weakening macros due to the Ukraine-Russia conflict, further softness in margins due to slower retail credit growth, and delay in getting regulatory approval for the proposed merger,” said Emkay Research in an investor note. While some brokerages have maintained their ‘Buy’ rating for HDFC Bank, the stock has seen a cut in target prices. <table style="border-width: initial; border-style: none;" class="redcator-table-advance"></colgroup><tbody><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.5pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:0pt 5.75pt 0pt 5.75pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Brokerage </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.5pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:0pt 5.75pt 0pt 5.75pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Rating </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.5pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:0pt 5.75pt 0pt 5.75pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Target price before results </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.5pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:0pt 5.75pt 0pt 5.75pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Target price after results </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.5pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:0pt 5.75pt 0pt 5.75pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Current upside </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:bottom;background-color:#d9d9d9;padding:0pt 5.75pt 0pt 5.75pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Edelweiss </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:bottom;background-color:#d9d9d9;padding:0pt 5.75pt 0pt 5.75pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Buy </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:bottom;background-color:#d9d9d9;padding:0pt 5.75pt 0pt 5.75pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">₹2,000 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:bottom;background-color:#d9d9d9;padding:0pt 5.75pt 0pt 5.75pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">₹1,860 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:bottom;background-color:#d9d9d9;padding:0pt 5.75pt 0pt 5.75pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">35% </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.5pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:0pt 5.75pt 0pt 5.75pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Kotak Inst. </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.5pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:0pt 5.75pt 0pt 5.75pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Buy </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.5pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:0pt 5.75pt 0pt 5.75pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">₹1,780 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.5pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:0pt 5.75pt 0pt 5.75pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">₹1,650 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.5pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:0pt 5.75pt 0pt 5.75pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">20% </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.5pt;vertical-align:bottom;background-color:#d9d9d9;padding:0pt 5.75pt 0pt 5.75pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Emkay Global </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.5pt;vertical-align:bottom;background-color:#d9d9d9;padding:0pt 5.75pt 0pt 5.75pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Buy </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.5pt;vertical-align:bottom;background-color:#d9d9d9;padding:0pt 5.75pt 0pt 5.75pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">₹2,050 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.5pt;vertical-align:bottom;background-color:#d9d9d9;padding:0pt 5.75pt 0pt 5.75pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">₹1,950 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.5pt;vertical-align:bottom;background-color:#d9d9d9;padding:0pt 5.75pt 0pt 5.75pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">42% </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.5pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:0pt 5.75pt 0pt 5.75pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Nomura </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.5pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:0pt 5.75pt 0pt 5.75pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Buy </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.5pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:0pt 5.75pt 0pt 5.75pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">₹1,955 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.5pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:0pt 5.75pt 0pt 5.75pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">₹1,705 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.5pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:0pt 5.75pt 0pt 5.75pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">24% </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.5pt;vertical-align:bottom;background-color:#d9d9d9;padding:0pt 5.75pt 0pt 5.75pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Yes Securities </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.5pt;vertical-align:bottom;background-color:#d9d9d9;padding:0pt 5.75pt 0pt 5.75pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Add </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.5pt;vertical-align:bottom;background-color:#d9d9d9;padding:0pt 5.75pt 0pt 5.75pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">₹1,900 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.5pt;vertical-align:bottom;background-color:#d9d9d9;padding:0pt 5.75pt 0pt 5.75pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">₹1,668 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.5pt;vertical-align:bottom;background-color:#d9d9d9;padding:0pt 5.75pt 0pt 5.75pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">21% </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.5pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:0pt 5.75pt 0pt 5.75pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Macquarie </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.5pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:0pt 5.75pt 0pt 5.75pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Outperform </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.5pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:0pt 5.75pt 0pt 5.75pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">₹2,005 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.5pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:0pt 5.75pt 0pt 5.75pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">₹2,005 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.5pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.5pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:0pt 5.75pt 0pt 5.75pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">46% </td></tr></tbody><tbody></tbody><tbody></tbody><tbody></tbody><tbody></tbody></table> Source: Brokerage reports | Upside as compared to CMP of ₹1,373, as on April 19, 2022. SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/finance/news/wholesale-inflation-in-india-is-now-near-the-same-level-as-it-was-during-the-1991-economic-crisis/articleshow/90930779.cms">Wholesale inflation in India is now near the same level as it was during the 1991 economic crisis</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/corporates/news/lt-might-merge-mindtree-and-lti-to-create-a-22-billion-it-company-says-a-new-report/articleshow/90931071.cms">After HDFC twin merger, L&amp;T might merge Mindtree and LTI to create a $22 billion IT company, says a new report</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/news/elon-musk-says-he-will-pay-0-in-salary-to-twitter-board-members-if-he-buys-the-company/articleshow/90929204.cms">Elon Musk says he will pay "$0" in salary to Twitter board members if he buys the company</a>

HDFC twins wipe out ₹2.5 lakh crore investor wealth, push HDFC out of top 10 largest companies in India

<ul><li>The global brokerage firm CLSA sees ITC's FMCG business as its new 'value driver,' and estimates EBITDA margin for FMCG to grow at 30% CAGR for the next three years.</li><li>JM Financial Services believes ITC still has a $22 billion addressable opportunity— which is much larger than the 'size of markets' of its peers</li><li>ITC shares have lost 30% of its value since the beginning of this year.</li><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/">Check out the latest news and updates on Business Insider. </a></li></ul>The shares of ITC, a tobacco and FMCG major, have been underperforming the market for a while now, raising concerns for its shareholders. And this COVID-19 pandemic has only added to the pressure. ITC's share price has fallen over 30% since the beginning of this year — given the drag from its mainstay cigarette business that was hit hard during the lockdown. The 110-year old ITC earns 59% of its revenues from non-tobacco business, according<a href="https://www.bseindia.com/xml-data/corpfiling/AttachHis/d48d203b-eb92-453a-b750-3c6a5947deac.pdf"> to FY20 results</a>. Comparatively, even its peers in the FMCG space have held their ground. Both HUL and Britannia's shares are now almost back to the pre-COVID levels — HUL has gained over 13%, whereas Britannia is up over 24% for the year. However, despite this weakness, investment experts are still betting on its potential ahead — they believe that the FMCG business will be the 'new value driver' — so much so that ITC may surpass its peers in the near future. <div type="image" title="ITC (1)" msid="78696958" hostid="261"></div> In fact, JM Financial Services believes that ITC still has a $22 billion addressable opportunity— which is much larger than HUL’s ‘size of markets’ and over three times that of Nestle India. The report highlighted that ITC’s FMCG segment is one of the most under-appreciated businesses in the Indian consumer space currently. But, by FY30, ITC could clock an FMCG EBITDA much higher than the combined FY20 EBITDA of its peers Tata Consumer, Nestle India, and Britannia. But, what may have changed for ITC over the quarter? Here’s what experts said. ITC has a ‘new value driver’ The global brokerage firm CLSA states that “ITC’s FMCG segment is set to become a major value driver, with the company’s legacy cigarette business providing the cash to meet its ambitious goals.” It recently upgraded the stock from Outperform to Buy with a target of ₹220. CLSA believes that ITC’s strategy to build capabilities and revenue in the FMCG space is a move in the right direction and puts their FMCG business on a clear path to profitability. CLSA estimates the EBITDA margin for FMCG to grow at 30% CAGR for the next three years. <div type="image" title="ITC portfolio" msid="78696972" hostid="261"></div> Though ITC as a stock doesn’t cut it for Founder and Chief Investment Officer of Marcellus Investment Managers, Saurabh Mukherjea — he is bullish about growth in its FMCG segment. Earlier in August, this year, Mukherjea, in an exclusive chat with Business Insider, said, “In a sense, our reckoning was for companies which can do two things well, and ITC can/does cigarettes very well. I think the ITC’s cigarette cash machine is the mightiest cash machine. In FMCG, they were increasingly successful. And, I think they can continue building the FMCG franchise under the leadership of Mr Puri. The recent acquisition is probably a sign of many more such successful FMCG acquisitions to come.” <div type="image" title="ITC FMCG" msid="78696984" hostid="261"></div> In a recent interview with<a href="https://www.moneycontrol.com/news/business/have-recovered-well-since-lockdown-says-itc-chairman-and-md-sanjiv-puri-5956561.html"> CNBC-TV18</a>, ITC chairman Sanjiv Puri said he was surprised by the underperformance in the stock and is taking measures to create shareholder value. On the FMCG business, Puri added that margin expansion will sustain and that FMCG growth will be industry-leading. Cigarette business drags, but it’s set to see a turnaround ITC's cigarette business took a massive hit during the pandemic. Due to the partial re-opening of the economy earlier this year, the company saw some revival on the back of pent-up demand in June. However, since then, the cigarette sales for ITC have fallen every month by 5-6%, according to B&amp;K Securities. Apart from COVID, there is also an overhang with environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG) theme investments that may become a headwind for tobacco companies. "We believe the gradual lifting of lockdowns in most states, opening up of bars in some states and more attendance in offices due to lesser fears from COVID-19, will lead to the marginal smoker slowly coming back," said B&amp;K Securities. However, Angel Broking believes that if the Maharashtra Government's move to ban the sale of loose cigarettes is implemented, this may hurt ITC's cigarette sales volume. But it's also to be noted that Maharashtra has the least number of the smoking population than the other parts of India. <div type="image" title="Capture new" msid="78697218" hostid="261"></div>Source: Centrum Broking ITC: Value buy or value trap? The shares of ITC have been in a downward trend since July 2017. And current technical indicators also suggest a bearish momentum. However, most analysts remain bullish on the company and have been for a while now. According to Bloomberg data, 30 of 39 analysts have a ‘Buy’ call. The bulls batting for ITC believe that the stock remains attractive at these low valuations. Paras Bothra, President of Equity Research, Ashika Stock Broking, told Business Insider that “ITC looks to be undervalued from a valuation perspective, and hence it is a good value Buy.” Bothra also added that “the second quarter is likely to be better than the first quarter as the economy opens up, and all their key verticals start functioning.” <table style="border-width: initial; border-style: none;"></colgroup><tbody><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Brokerages on ITC </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Recommendation </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Target Price </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">CLSA </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Buy </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">₹ 220 </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Centrum </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Buy </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">₹260 </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">B&amp;K Securities </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Buy </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">₹353 </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Kotak Institutional Securities </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Buy </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">₹240 </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Ashika Stock Broking </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Buy </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">₹ 220 </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Motilal Oswal </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Neutral </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">₹ 185 </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">ICICI Securities </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">ADD </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.9907650000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">₹ 220 </td></tr></tbody></table> SEE ALSO:<a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/stock-market/news/dow-jones-ends-lower-for-third-day-as-weak-jobless-claims-stimulus-impasse-weigh-on-sentiment/articleshow/78692395.cms" data-type="tilCustomLink"> Dow Jones ends lower for third day as weak jobless claims, stimulus impasse weigh on sentiment</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/corporates/news/hcl-tech-second-quarter-to-see-a-boost-from-cloud-adoption-analysts-expect-it-to-breach-3-5-revenue-growth-guidance/articleshow/78685100.cms" data-type="tilCustomLink">HCL Tech's second quarter to see a boost from cloud adoption — analysts expect it to breach 3.5% revenue growth guidance</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/defense/news/border-infrastructure-is-not-the-cause-of-friction-between-india-and-china-says-mea-spokesperson/articleshow/78681546.cms" data-type="tilCustomLink">Border infrastructure is not the cause of friction between India and China, says MEA spokesperson</a>

Investment experts are bullish on ITC's 'new value driver' — despite the 30% fall in share price this year

Equity benchmark Sensex resumed its record-setting streak on Thursday after a day's pause as gains in index major TCS offset profit-booking in the IT pack following strong results by <keyword id="6354512" type="DOMAIN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Infosys">Infosys</keyword> and Wipro. A broad upmove in global equities and a recovering rupee further propped up the bourses, traders said. Recovering from a shaky start, the 30-share BSE Sensex gained momentum during the day to end at its new lifetime high of 49,584.16, up 91.84 points or 0.19 per cent. Similarly, the broader NSE Nifty rose 30.75 points or 0.21 per cent to finish at a record 14,595.60. TCS topped the Sensex gainer's chart, spurting 2.89 per cent, followed by IndusInd Bank, L&amp;T, ITC, <keyword id="6355199" type="DOMAIN" weightage="20" keywordseo="reliance-industries">Reliance Industries</keyword>, HUL and <keyword id="44642" type="DOMAIN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Sun-Pharma">Sun Pharma</keyword>. On the other hand, <keyword id="141968" type="DOMAIN" weightage="20" keywordseo="HCL-Tech">HCL Tech</keyword>, Axis Bank, <keyword id="106317" type="DOMAIN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Asian-Paints">Asian Paints</keyword>, <keyword id="6355596" type="DOMAIN" weightage="20" keywordseo="ultratech-cement">UltraTech Cement</keyword>, Infosys and Tech Mahindra were among the laggards, declining up to 2.63 per cent. Infosys on Wednesday posted a 16.6 per cent rise in consolidated net profit at Rs 5,197 crore for the December 2020 quarter, and increased its revenue growth guidance for FY21 to 4.5-5 per cent on the back of large project wins and strong deal pipeline. Wipro posted an about 21 per cent jump in consolidated net profit at Rs 2,968 crore for the December 2020 quarter, and said the demand environment is improving steadily. Domestic equities witnessed a brisk recovery from the day's low mainly led by a rebound in FMCG and pharma stocks, said Binod Modi, Head- Strategy at Reliance Securities. IT index has been the most surprising as profit-booking was visible in many IT stocks despite strong Q3 numbers and upbeat guidance shared by the managements, he added. "We believe underlying strength of the market remains intact and any correction in the market is likely to be bought out. Sustained recovery in key economic data for Dec'20, better-than-expected 3Q FY21 corporate earnings so far and upbeat managements' commentaries continue to augur well for the market," he said. BSE capital goods, oil and gas, energy, healthcare, FMCG and industrials indices rose up to 1.67 per cent, while metal, basic materials, consumer durables, bankex, teck, finance and IT closed with losses. Broader BSE midcap and smallcap indices jumped up to 0.29 per cent. On the macroeconomic front, the wholesale price-based inflation moderated to 1.22 per cent in December as prices of kitchen staples onion and potato eased, government data showed on Thursday. Meanwhile, Fitch Ratings said the Indian economy will suffer lasting damage from the coronavirus crisis, with growth slowing down after an initial strong rebound next fiscal. Global markets looked beyond US President Donald Trump's record second impeachment and focussed on his successor Joe Biden's proposed USD 2 trillion stimulus programme. Elsewhere in Asia, bourses in Hong Kong, Seoul and Tokyo ended in the positive territory, while Shanghai was in the red. Stock exchanges in Europe were also trading with gains in early deals. The global oil benchmark Brent crude was trading 0.12 per cent lower at USD 55.99 per barrel. The rupee gained for the third straight day and closed 11 paise higher at 73.04 against the US dollar. Foreign institutional investors remained net buyers in the capital markets, snapping up shares worth Rs 1,879.06 crore on Wednesday, according to provisional exchange data. SEE ALSO:<a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/apps/news/the-indian-government-may-call-whatsapp-to-explain-why-its-new-data-sharing-terms-apply-in-india-but-not-in-europe/articleshow/80262586.cms" data-type="tilCustomLink"> The Indian government may call WhatsApp to explain why its new data privacy policy applies in India but not in Europe</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/politics/world/news/trump-becomes-first-president-to-be-impeached-twice-as-house-charges-him-with-inciting-an-insurrection/articleshow/80260200.cms" data-type="tilCustomLink">Trump becomes first president to be impeached twice as House charges him with inciting an insurrection</a>

TCS, RIL push the market to new records — Nifty inches closer to 14,600

<ul><li><keyword id="45660" type="CITY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Yes-Bank">Yes Bank</keyword>'s share price dipped by 5% in the morning today, May 6, ahead of its earnings announced scheduled during after market hours.</li><li>The troubled private sector bank posted a net loss of ₹18,564 crore in the last quarter as it wiped dirty money from its balance sheet.</li><li>Analysts believe that this quarter’s earnings hold more hope but a lot depends on whether or the bank’s borrowers opted for the 3-month moratorium on loan repayments floated by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI).</li></ul>Yes Bank's shares dipped by nearly 5% ahead of its earnings announcement later today, May 6. But that’s barely a move for the banks’ investors who have lost a total of 26.8% this year so far, nearly saw the bank fail until <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/india/news/sbi-board-approves-investment-of-7250-crore-in-yes-bank/articleshow/74594098.cms">State Bank of India (SBI) and some peers came to its rescue</a>. If anything, the stock has recovered during the COVID-19 lockdown as the fears around its survival eased. Investors hope that despite the lockdown and the moratorium on loans the Jan-March quarter will be better than the preceding three months where the bank seemed to be going under. <div type="image" title="Yes Bank&amp;#39;s share price over the last three months" msid="75554861" hostid="261" caption="&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Yes Bank&amp;#39;s share price over the last three months&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;"></div> To fix the surge of sub-standard loans in the bank’s kitty, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) placed a one-month moratorium which capped all withdrawals from Yes Bank at ₹50,000, which <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/finance/news/yes-bank-mobile-and-net-banking-down-after-rbi-limits-withdrawals-to-50000/articleshow/74499754.cms">came into effect on March 5</a>. This tanked the share price by over 56% overnight. When the moratorium was eventually lifted on March 18, the stock surged back up — hitting ₹60.80. But the quarterly numbers will reflect the mess that was created within the bank and later cleaned up. However, it may be too soon to say what the ultimate outcome will be given whether or not the bank’s retail borrowers have taken up the Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) offer on the <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/finance/news/home-loans-education-loans-and-business-loan-interest-payments-deferred-for-three-months-by-rbi/articleshow/74841767.cms">3-month moratorium to pay off loans</a>. Last quarter, the troubled private sector lender Yes Bank posted a <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/finance/news/only-one-third-of-yes-banks-customers-withdrew-more-than-50000-during-the-moratorium/articleshow/74676798.cms">record-high loss</a> of ₹18,564 crore for the quarter ended December on the back of a steep rise in bad loans. Coming out of two straight quarters of losses, investors would hope the incremental risk for Yes Bank may be lesser this time. <div type="image" title="snapshot-1588678424971" msid="75554875" hostid="261" caption="&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Yes Bank&amp;#39;s net profit and loss over the last five quarters&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;"></div> The lockdown, which came into force March 25, has exacerbated the risks for banks that were already saddled by bad debts. But the trend seems to vary from one bank to another. At <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/stock-market/news/indusind-bank-shares-skyrocket-by-10-as-its-customers-choose-not-to-defer-paying-off-loans/articleshow/75425195.cms">IndusInd Bank</a>, for instance, more than 90% of the borrowers across vertices chose to make their repayments. Whereas <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/corporates/news/axis-bank-q4-earnings-show-bad-loans-ease-but-ceo-amitabh-chaudhry-maintains-caution/articleshow/75429938.cms">Axis Bank posted an unexpected loss</a> as the provision for future bad loans spiked, which means the bank expects more borrowers to be unable to repay their debt. In the case of home loan provider, <a href="https://www.facebook.com/cnbctv18india/videos/573186409982818/?v=573186409982818">CanFin Homes</a>, 50% of borrowers sought to delay their monthly instalments. So, what happens to the <keyword id="4816246" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Yes-Bank-Share-Price">Yes Bank share price</keyword> tomorrow will depend on a lot of factors outside the bank even if all the hidden dirt within the company has been exposed. See also: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/corporates/news/both-silver-lake-and-mukesh-ambani-hope-that-reliance-jio-will-replicate-alibabas-magic-and-this-time-zuckerberg-will-get-a-chunk/articleshow/75548041.cms">Both Silver Lake and Mukesh Ambani hope that Reliance Jio will replicate Alibaba's magic⁠ — and this time Zuckerberg will get a chunk</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/finance/news/sbi-share-price-and-hdfc-bank-share-value-comparison/articleshow/75535265.cms">SBI, India's largest bank, is only worth a third of HDFC Bank — and the COVID-19 lockdown is making it bleed even more</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/policy/economy/news/hul-ceo-had-hoped-for-a-v-shaped-economic-recovery-from-covid-19-crisis-but-investors-fear-a-lot-worse/articleshow/75547375.cms">HUL CEO had hoped for a V-shaped economic recovery from COVID-19 crisis ⁠— but investors fear a lot worse</a>

Yes Bank's share price slips 5% ahead of earnings as COVID-19 uncertainty continues to loom after scam

Mumbai, Jan 23 () Market benchmark Sensex rose over 250 points on Thursday tracking gains in L&amp;T, Axis Bank and Infosys, despite massive selloff in global equities.
 The 30-share BSE index was trading 233.92 points or 0.57 per cent higher at 41,349.30. Similarly, the broader NSE was trading 60.80 points, or 0.50 per cent, up at 12,167.70.
 Larsen &amp; Toubro (L&amp;T) and Axis Bank were the top gainers in the Sensex pack, rising up to 2.77 per cent, after the companies posted positive quarterly numbers.
 After market hours on Wednesday, L&amp;T reported a 15 per cent rise in its consolidated net profit at Rs 2,560.32 crore for quarter to December 2019.
 Likewise, Axis Bank posted a 4.5 per cent year-on-year jump in net profit at Rs 1,757 crore for the third quarter ended December 2019 amid improving asset quality.
 Shares of Infosys jumped 1.44 per cent after the government said it was working with the managed service provider for the goods and services tax (GST) regime, to improve the performance of GSTN filing portal on a permanent basis.
 On the other hand, HUL, Nestle, Asian Paints and Tech Mahindra was trading in the red.
 According to traders, despite selloff in other Asian equities amid fears of contagion after a deadly new virus emerged from China, stock-specific action kept domestic benchmarks buoyed.
 Bourses in Shanghai, Hong Kong, Tokyo and Seoul were trading significantly lower.
 Brent crude oil futures dropped 1.33 per cent to USD 62.37 per barrel.
 Meanwhile, the rupee depreciated marginally to 71.21 against the US dollar in morning session.
 In the previous session, Sensex settled 208.43 points, or 0.50 per cent, lower at 41,115.38; while the Nifty closed 62.95 points, or 0.52 per cent, lower at 12,106.90.
 Meanwhile, on a net basis, foreign institutional investors sold equities worth Rs 176.43 crore, while domestic institutional investors offloaded shares worth Rs 326.22 crore on Wednesday, data available with stock exchanges showed. ANS
ANS

Sensex rises over 250 pts; L&T, Axis Bank rally 3 pc

Mumbai, Jul 9 () Resuming their upmove after a day's breather, equity benchmarks posted smart gains on Thursday as buyers flocked to finance and banking counters amid buoyancy in global markets. After touching a peak of 36,806.30 during the day, the 30-share BSE Sensex settled 408.68 points, or 1.12 per cent, higher at 36,737.69. Similarly, the NSE Nifty jumped 107.70 points, or 1.01 per cent, to finish at 10,813.45. Both the indices closed at four-month highs. Bajaj Finance was the top gainer in the Sensex pack, spurting 3.93 per cent, followed by SBI, Tata Steel, HDFC, Bajaj Finserv, HCL Tech and Axis Bank. In value terms, HDFC, Reliance Industries and HDFC Bank contributed to most of the gains on the Sensex. On the other hand, ONGC, Tech Mahindra, Maruti, TCS, HUL and ITC were among the laggards, skidding up to 1.66 per cent. Meanwhile, wooing global companies, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday said Asia's third-largest economy is one of the most open in the world and offers investment friendly, competitive business environment and immense opportunities. Speaking at the India Global Week 2020, he said green shoots of economic revival are already visible in India that is coming out of coronavirus lockdown. Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Financial Services at Geojit Financial Services, said, "In spite of rising concerns regarding the spread of the virus infections, markets continued to focus on the path to recovery in the economy. With liquidity giving adequate support, investors are looking towards the start of the earnings season." "With the lockdown and the economic activity coming to a standstill in the last quarter, investors will be looking forward to the earnings commentary, to understand the outlook," he added. BSE metal, finance, bankex, basic materials, energy and telecom indices surged up to 2.13 per cent, while FMCG, power and capital goods ended with losses. Broader BSE mid-cap and small-cap indices rose up to 0.49 per cent. On the global front, Chinese equities led other Asian markets higher. Bourses in Shanghai, Hong Kong, Tokyo and Seoul ended with significant gains. Stock exchanges in Europe too opened on a positive note. International oil benchmark Brent crude futures inched up 0.05 per cent to USD 43.31 per barrel. In the forex market, the rupee settled 3 paise higher at 74.99 against the US dollar. India saw a record single-day surge of 24,879 COVID-19 cases taking the caseload to 7,67,296 on Thursday, while the death toll climbed to 21,129, according to the Union Health Ministry data. ANS ANS ABM ABM

Markets resume upward march; HDFC twins, RIL sparkle

<ul><li>The company, which listed nearly a year ago, posted a net profit of ₹74 crore in QFY21, up by 129% from ₹32 crore last year.</li><li><keyword id="381854" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Indiamart">IndiaMart</keyword> founder <keyword id="127964" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Dinesh-Agarwal">Dinesh Agarwal</keyword> managed to do this even when what his company most depends on couldn’t move due to lockdown – field sales. </li><li>In an interview with Business Insider, Agarwal shares how the company posted profits even while things were looking bleak in the beginning of April. </li></ul>IndiaMart, one of India’s biggest online marketplaces for businesses, has achieved something that not many other companies have – during the lockdown quarter of April to June, the company has posted over a 100% jump in profits. The company, which has been listed for just a year now, posted a net profit of ₹74 crore in QFY21, up by 129% from ₹32 crore last year. This spurred a stellar rally with IndiaMart’s shares surging 8% to ₹2327 in morning trade.. <div type="image" title="indiamart share." msid="77102824" hostid="261"></div> And IndiaMart founder Dinesh Agarwal managed to do this even when what his company most depends on couldn’t move due to lockdown – field sales. For the 24-year old company, work from home had never been the norm and most of its revenue comes from its field sales. <div type="image" title="Indiamart." msid="77102708" hostid="261"></div> But Agarwal and his team were better prepared. From February itself they had anticipated a slowdown due to China shutting down, but a lockdown is not what they had expected. “We started figuring out as the demand for sanitizers and health essentials shot up. By the second half of March, our focus was on how to maintain business continuity and how to ensure employee safety while making sure the website was running and the call centre too was operational,” Agarwal told Business Insider. Quick thinking IndiaMart has always had ‘medical’ or healthcare as a category, but within the initial weeks of the coronavirus pandemic, Agarwal realised that it would become an on-demand category. And they were quick to turn things around. “We started calling up suppliers, did some innovative thinking. We called up bike helmet suppliers and asked them that since you have a helmet shield can you make face shields and they happily agreed. We went to undergarment manufacturers and asked them to make face masks. So, we really started to build category by category,” Agarwal said. <div type="image" title="Indiamart sellers and buyers." msid="77102721" hostid="261"></div> Variety of products available The platform has over 68 million product listings across 100,000 categories. “If you can’t find something on IndiaMart, you won’t find it on the internet,” Agarwal told us. But this variety of products available also pumped their revenue, because then companies weren’t just coming on the platform for finished products but also to discover certain elements like bottle caps, elastic among others. Agarwal believes this also keeps them different from their rising list of <keyword id="2771895" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="b2b-ecommerce">B2B ecommerce</keyword> competitors – Amazon, Alibaba, Walmart wholesale, TradeIndia, ExportersIndia.com among others. “Our target is also different. The other companies focus on the top 2000 products, which are generally branded, in the FMCG sector. That’s not what IndiaMart is going after. From steel bars to trucks and everything in between is what IndiaMart sells,” he said. Balancing their costs and their customers’ too In the beginning of April, their revenues were completely down as most of their customers' business had hit pause – their buyer traffic was down by 50%. “Only one-third of our sales used to be from online or telecom,” said Agarwal. So, they went around looking at places where they can cut costs. They turned to automation of many processes and deferred plans that would have burnt a hole in their pocket. Agarwal said that while many employees offered to give up salaries, they didn’t lay off anyone. “We are a slow hiring company, so we didn’t want to fire anyone,” he said. But that wasn’t all. They also had to prepare for their customers, who were in a similar business situation. “We offered moratoriums to customers who said they won’t be able to pay,” he said. As the economy opened up, things started to look better and because of their initiatives, Agarwal says customers and buyers both saw value in IndiaMart. The new driver – tech IndiaMart, over the recent years, has turned to technology to add layers to its offerings. “We are enabling seller and buyer interaction with a CRM and have also become a price discovery platform for many buyers in India. Even if they don’t end up buying from India, we have been able to democratize prices for buyers,” he said. Out of their total expenses, 20% of it goes into investing in products and technology, while out of the 4500 employees, 20% of them are in product and technology. SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/stock-market/news/axis-bank-share-price-surges-over-6-after-earnings-reveal-that-only-9-7-of-its-loans-are-exposed-to-the-moratorium/articleshow/77100105.cms">Axis Bank share price surges over 6% after earnings reveal that only 9.7% of its loans are exposed to the moratorium</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/stock-market/markets/news/horlicks-helps-hul-share-price/articleshow/77100666.cms">Horlicks helps HUL clock a profit – but shareholders want more</a>

IndiaMart’s Dinesh Agarwal shares how the profit doubled during the lockdown

What is <keyword id="2546489" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="NiftyMRP">Nifty@MRP</keyword>? As investors, we constantly track <keyword id="6354813" type="COMPANY" weightage="100" keywordseo="nifty">Nifty</keyword> movements. To make investing more profitable and not a game of mere chance, we need a solution, a solution which could help us identify whether the market is grossly depressed or irrationally exuberant. This is exactly what Nifty @ MRP is for! 
 
Considering that the Nifty stocks are the top-traded stocks of the country, we expect them to be traded at their MRPs (fair value) but this may not always be true. Thus, Nifty @ MRP gives an indication whether the Nifty is fairly valued or irrationality is driving the markets. 
 
What is the latest value of Nifty@MRP? A lot of things have changed in the past six months, since we last sent out our Nifty@MRP report. Modi-led BJP won elections with a majority; current account deficit has been brought under control; huge FII funds inflow, the economy expanded by 5.7% in the first financial quarter – signalling bottoming out of economy after two years of falling <keyword id="35050" type="CITY" weightage="60" keywordseo="gdp">GDP</keyword> growth! 
 
With the new government better positioned to bring in the much required reforms for the economic growth, the markets saw a long rally post elections. But markets move faster than the economy. However, the fundamentals are yet to show signs of a turnaround. As a result, our valuations too reflect a cautious optimism. 
 
For June 14, Considering the free float market capitalization at the MRP of individual stocks and the share price data as of 30th September, the Nifty@MRP comes out to be 8003.77. On 30th September, NSE Nifty index closed at 7964.8, which is 0.5% or 39 points below the Nifty@MRP of 8003.77. It indicates that the index is fairly-valued. 
 
On similar lines, the Sensex@MRP comes out to 26341. On 30th September, the Sensex closed at 26630.5, which is about 1% or 290 points above Sensex@MRP of 26341. 
 
So, were we surprised with this valuation? Well, to be honest we were slightly surprised to see the Nifty fairly valued at 8003! But the valuations of the individual Nifty companies were done prior to arriving at a value for Nifty@MRP. Each company has been valued separately with rigour. The Nifty@MRP value is merely an outcome of these individual valuations. 
 
The sectors that have majorly contributed to this spurt in the Nifty@MRP value are Banking, Pharma, IT and Auto. The turnaround in banking sector was expected as in Dec 2013, the economy was still in doldrums and the threat of NPAs loomed large. With economy expected to grow and banks taking decisive steps towards curbing NPAs, our valuations too have started to reflect the growth potential in the sector. Recovery in industrial sector is expected to give a boost to Auto, while the US recovery will support growth in the IT sector. Our close analysis of data in the Pharma sector suggests huge growth potential in a few companies, which has been thereby reflected in our valuation. 
 
Analysis of the June 14 Quarter financial performance of the Nifty 50 companies 
 
Quarterly Performance 
While on a yearly basis, the companies seemed to have performed well, we can still see a degrowth on a Q-o-Q basis. In fact, net profits continue to decline for a third consecutive quarter. Sectors like FMCG, Pharma, IT, Banks and Auto have shown good performance in this quarter. While sectors like Cement, Metals, Energy and Capital Goods have not yet shown signs of improvement. 
 
With respect to financial performance leaders include Dr. Reddys Laboratories, HCL Technologies, Asian Paints, ITC, HUL, Bank of Baroda, Lupin, PNB, Tata motors Ltd. While the list of laggards includes companies like ACC, BHEL, Cairn India Ltd., DLF, GAIL, NTPC, Sesa Sterlite, Tata Steel. The quarterly results of all Nifty companies except ONGC, BPCL and Tata Motors were in line with our expectations. 
 
Overall, Q1FY14 results show the continued weakness in the economy, with deceleration in net sales, weak pricing power and high interest costs reflecting in the profit degrowth. With RBI seemingly on a path to continue high interest rates may further lead to deterioration in companies with stressed balance sheet. However, with China slowing down and US crude output increasing, we expect India to be a key beneficiary of falling global commodity prices. We believe this would aid the recovery in the Indian economy even though it would be a slow and gradual process as India kick starts its asset-creation program. 
 
Over all, out of 50 Nifty companies, around 18 companies are trading below their MRP (under-valued), 8 Companies are trading close to their MRP i.e. are fairly valued while 24 companies are trading above their MRP (over-valued). 
 
Future Outlook 
Slowdown in global demand, sluggish domestic economic activity, high inflation and interest rates have led to a sub 5% GDP growth in the last two years. This is expected to change as the new government, has initiated reforms process to attract investment and remove infrastructure bottlenecks that will boost growth. Unclogging of policy logjam will lead to rise in the domestic investment and consumption, which will further give a boost to growth. Sectors like auto, consumer durables will gain from this revival. Also, services sector which contributes 60% to real GDP, is expected to grow on the back of acceleration in trade, transport, and banking. 
 
However, this growth comes with a caveat, with both the government and central bank required to play their roles well. The growth forecasts assume that reforms are undertaken to ease supply-side constraints (particularly in energy and infrastructure) and to improve labour productivity, fiscal policy tightening continues, and a credible monetary policy stance is maintained. 
 Also, on a global economic front, things remain sketchy. The U.S. fed has signalled towards high interest rates and we think this may happen earlier than the markets expect. In fact, foreign markets have already started factoring in an interest rate of 3% as soon as Q1 FY16. Eurozone too continues to send warning signals. The Eurozone manufacturing <keyword id="104215" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="60" keywordseo="PMI">PMI</keyword> fell to a 14-month low of 50.5 in September 14. In fact manufacturing PMI of Germany, one of the best performing economies of the Eurozone, has decined to 49.9 in Sept 14 signalling contraction. China too continues on its troubled path. Though the Chinese GDP has grown energy consumption has remained stagnant which forces us to remain circumspect about the Chinese data numbers. 
 
On the valuation front, markets seem to have factored in all the domestic positives after the long run witnessed post elections. Though our recent experience suggests, that attractive investment opportunities can be found in unconventional places. We would therefore urge investors to look hard at finding value buys in this market. The correction seen in the past 2-3 days if continued will only open up more doors for the value investor. Remember, to buy fundamentally strong companies at a sufficient margin of safety! 
This article is submitted by <a href="http://www.moneyworks4me.com/">www.moneyworks4me.com</a>

You Searched For "HUL third quarter" and got 13 results

Hindustan Unilever shares fall over 4%

PTI

RIL’s Q3 net profit stays flat at ₹15,792 crore – retail and Jio deliver, while O2C drags due to weak demand

Rounak Jain

Sensex, Nifty decline for 2nd day on selling in FMCG, steel stocks

PTI

JustDial can’t beat Google and it should stop trying to, say analysts

Kritti Bhalla

Sensex rallies over 300 points, Nifty near 18,100 level — M&M, PowerGrid, Bharti Airtel, L&T, ICICI Bank and Axis Bank top gainers

PTI

HDFC twins wipe out ₹2.5 lakh crore investor wealth, push HDFC out of top 10 largest companies in India

Rounak Jain

Investment experts are bullish on ITC's 'new value driver' — despite the 30% fall in share price this year

Navdeep Yadav

TCS, RIL push the market to new records — Nifty inches closer to 14,600

PTI

Yes Bank's share price slips 5% ahead of earnings as COVID-19 uncertainty continues to loom after scam

Prabhjote Gill

Sensex rises over 250 pts; L&T, Axis Bank rally 3 pc

PTI

Markets resume upward march; HDFC twins, RIL sparkle

PTI

IndiaMart’s Dinesh Agarwal shares how the profit doubled during the lockdown

Sanchita Dash

Nifty Above 7900, Should You Still Be Buying? Nifty@MRP Has The Answer

Guest Author