After Market: Autos, financials mixed; raters continue to rise

Mumbai: While auto stocks closed mixed amid subdued December sales data on the first trading session of 2020, the benchmark indices managed to close in the green.

Maruti Suzuki shed 0.74 per cent, after India’s largest carmaker reported a 2.4 per cent rise in December sales. M&M rose 1 per cent, after reporting a 1 per cent rise in sales. The 30-share Sensex closed 0.13 per cent, or 52.28 points, higher at 41,306 for the day, while the 50-share Nifty closed at 12,189, up 0.17 per cent or 21.25 points.

“After showing sharp weakness in the last session, Nifty failed to show follow-through weakness and closed the day on a slightly positive note. A small negative candle was formed on Wednesday with a narrow rangebound movement. Wednesday’s candle pattern didn’t have any predictive value,” said Nagaraj Shetti, Technical & Derivative Analyst, HDFC Securities.

“Nifty initial support is intact at 12,160, but it was unable to show any significant up-move from the lower support. A move below this support may lead the index towards its next support at 12,180 in the short term,” Shetti said.

Here is a lowdown on the movers and shakers of Tuesday’s session:

Financials a mixed bag
State Bank of India, the country’s biggest lender, edged 0.19 per cent higher to Rs 334.35, while rival HDFC Bank advanced 0.57 per cent to close at Rs 1,279. Mortgage lender HDFC rose 0.84 per cent to close at Rs 2,433. On the other hand, IndusInd Bank dropped 1.72 per cent to Rs 1,484, while ICICI Bank shed 0.36 per cent to Rs 536.

Who moved my Sensex
Lenders weighed the most on the Sensex pack. HDFC (33.20) contributed the most to the fall in the Sensex, while twin HDFC Bank (29.26 points) followed next. Among others, IndusInd slipped 1.72 per cent, Axis Bank 068 per cent, Kotak Bank 0.56 per cent and ICICI Bank 0.36 per cent.

Raters still on a high
Stocks of rating agencies continued their northward journey. CARE Ratings rose for the seventh session in a row, and added 47.92 per cent during this period. On Wednesday, it closed 6.55 per cent higher at Rs 682.20. CRISIL added 1.64 per cent to Rs 1,941.55. ICRA bucked the trend, and shed 1.27 per cent to close at Rs 3,040.

Broader market outperforms
The broader market fared better, with BSE500 index advancing 0.17 per cent, while BSE Midcap and Smallcap indices gained 0.21 per cent and 0.64 per cent respectively.

Power stocks rise
BSE Power index was the top sectoral gainer, having risen 1.78 per cent. Only one of its constituents closed in the red. Adani Power was the top gainer, up 3.40 per cent at Rs 63.90.

Most active stocks on NSE
By value, Reliance Industries was the most active stock on NSE. State Bank of India and Indiabulls Housing Finance followed next. By volume, YES Bank was the most traded stock on NSE, followed by Vodafone Idea and Dish TV.

38 stocks at 52-week highs
As many as 38 stocks hit their 52-week highs on NSE. These included Adani Green Energy, Alembic, Coromandel International, Balrampur Chini, Gujarat Gas, IIFL Securities, Jubilant Foodworks and Narayana Hrudayalaya, among others. On the other hand, 27 stocks tumbled to 52-week lows. Among them were Coz & Kings, CSB Bank, Emco, JP Associates, Stampede Capital, and Somany Home Innovation.

40 stocks flash ‘buy’ signals
As many as 40 stocks gave ‘buy’ signals, as they crossed above the signal line on the MACD charts. They included BHEL, Adani Ports, Gujarat Gas, Narayana Hrudayalaya, Usha Martin, Godrej Industries and Dr Lal Pathlabs. MACD is a momentum indicator used in technical analysis. It is usually applied in conjunction with other technical indicators.