InterGlobe Aviation and Bikaji Foods Report Robust Q4 Results, HCL Technologies’ Strategic Acquisition, Zee Terminates Merger Agreement

Opening Bell: 

Gift Nifty is down by 48.5 points in the early morning trade, indicating a negative opening for Indian stock market                                  

Asian markets traded lower on Friday, mirroring overnight losses on Wall Street. The Nikkei 225 dropped 1.83%, and the Topix decreased by 1.22%. South Korea’s Kospi slipped 1.34%, while the Kosdaq declined 0.95%. Futures for Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index also pointed to a weaker opening.

The US stock market closed lower on Thursday, with the Dow Jones experiencing its largest daily percentage drop since March 22, 2023. The Dow Jones Industrial Average plunged 605.78 points, or 1.53%, to 39,065.26. The S&P 500 fell 39.17 points, or 0.74%, to 5,267.84, and the Nasdaq Composite decreased by 65.51 points, or 0.39%, to 16,736.03. In individual stocks, Nvidia’s share price surged 9.32%, closing above $1,000 per share for the first time. DuPont shares rose 0.48%, while Live Nation’s share price dropped 7.81%.

Stocks News:

👉 InterGlobe Aviation’s Q4 consolidated year-on-year profit surged by 106.1%, reaching ₹1,894.8 crore compared to ₹919.2 crore in the previous year. The company’s revenue grew by 26%, amounting to ₹17,825.3 crore, up from ₹14,160.6 crore. Additionally, EBITDAR saw a significant increase of 48.7%, rising to ₹4,412.3 crore from ₹2,966.5 crore.

👉 Bikaji Foods International reported a remarkable 200.6% increase in its Q4 consolidated year-on-year profit, which soared to ₹116.3 crore from ₹38.7 crore. The company’s revenue rose by 33%, reaching ₹614.4 crore compared to ₹462.3 crore in the previous year. Furthermore, the EBITDAR margin expanded to 24.8% from 20.9%.       

👉 HCL Technologies, the global technology company, has acquired certain assets of the Communications Technology Group (CTG) from Hewlett Packard Enterprise for $225 million. This acquisition includes industry-leading intellectual property (IP), engineering and R&D talent, as well as client relationships with top global Communication Service Providers.

👉 Zee has announced that Culver Max Entertainment (formerly Sony Pictures Networks India) and Bangla Entertainment have failed to meet their obligations under the Merger Cooperation Agreement (MCA). As a result, Zee has terminated the MCA and is demanding that Culver Max and BEPL pay the termination fee of $90 million, as stipulated in the agreement.

👉 FII & DII Flow Foreign institutional investors turned buyers on May 23 as they bought Indian equities worth Rs 4,670.95 crore, while domestic institutional investors bought Rs 146.51 crore worth of equities during the same period.

Domestic and International Events

• On Wednesday, the Maldives announced that both India and China have agreed to collaborate in conducting imports using their own currencies instead of the US dollar. This move is expected to reduce Male’s annual imports bill by nearly 50%, which currently stands at USD 1.5 million from the two countries. Economic Development Minister Mohamed Saeed revealed that he held discussions with Indian High Commissioner Munu Mahawar two weeks ago. During the meeting, Mahawar assured New Delhi’s support and cooperation in facilitating import payments in Indian Rupee.

• Japan’s core inflation slowed for a second straight month in April, but stayed comfortably above the central bank’s 2% target. The nationwide core consumer price index (CPI), which excludes fresh food items, rose 2.2% from a year earlier after rising 2.6% in March. It matched the median market forecast.

• Oil prices remained steady early in the session on Friday as market participants assessed the U.S. Federal Reserve’s latest comments on interest rates amid persistent inflation. Seasonal strengthening of U.S. fuel demand also provided support. Brent crude futures inched up by 1 cent to $81.37 per barrel at 0002 GMT, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures dipped by 2 cents to $76.85 per barrel.