Reliance’s Marginal Growth, Mahindra’s Loss, Tejas Networks’ Profit Surge, and Hatsun Agro’s Growth

Opening Bell: 

Gift Nifty is up by 2.0 points in the early morning trade, indicating a positive opening for Indian stock market

On Tuesday, Asian markets saw an uptick, buoyed by overnight gains on Wall Street. Japan’s Nikkei 225 surged by 0.8%, accompanied by a 0.66% rise in the Topix. South Korea’s Kospi saw a modest increase of 0.2%, while the Kosdaq climbed by 0.62%. However, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index futures hinted at a sluggish start.

On Monday, Wall Street witnessed an upward trend after recent market declines, with investors anticipating a significant week ahead for quarterly reports from major companies, offering insights into the health of the US economy. The S&P 500 surged by 43.37 points, marking a gain of 0.87%, closing at 5,010.60, while the Nasdaq Composite rose by 169.30 points, or 1.11%, reaching 15,451.31. Additionally, the Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed by 253.58 points, representing a 0.67% increase, ending the day at 38,239.98.

Stocks News:

👉 Reliance Industries: The conglomerate, spanning oil, telecom, and retail sectors, recorded a net profit of Rs 21,243 crore for the March quarter of FY24, marking a marginal 0.1 percent YoY growth, primarily impacted by increased tax expenses. Gross revenue for the quarter stood at Rs 2,64,834 crore, reflecting a robust 10.8 percent year-on-year increase, driven by strong growth in its oil-to-chemical (O2C) and consumer businesses. EBITDA rose by 14.3 percent year-on-year to Rs 47,150 crore, with significant contributions from all segments, resulting in a 50 bps margin expansion to 17.8 percent. Reliance achieved a significant milestone by becoming the first Indian company to surpass the Rs 1 lakh crore mark in pre-tax profit on an annual basis.

👉 Mahindra Logistics: The logistics services provider reported a net loss of Rs 11.9 crore for the quarter ending March FY24, in contrast to a profit of Rs 0.20 crore in the corresponding period last year, primarily due to weak operational performance. Consolidated revenue from operations for the quarter reached Rs 1,450.8 crore, indicating a 14 percent growth compared to the same period in the previous fiscal. The board has approved the re-appointment of Rampraveen Swaminathan as the managing director and chief executive officer of the company for a five-year term starting from February 4, 2025.   

👉 Tejas Networks: The manufacturer of wireline and wireless networking products reported a consolidated net profit of Rs 146.8 crore for the quarter ending March FY24, driven by robust revenue growth. This marks a significant improvement from the net loss of Rs 11.5 crore reported in the same period last year. Revenue from operations witnessed a substantial surge, increasing by 343.3 percent year-on-year to Rs 1,326.88 crore in Q4 FY24.

👉 Hatsun Agro Product: The dairy company reported an impressive 109 percent year-on-year growth in net profit, reaching Rs 52.2 crore for the March quarter of FY24, fueled by a strong operational performance. Revenue from operations for the quarter grew by 14.4 percent to Rs 2,047 crore compared to the corresponding period in the previous fiscal year.

👉 Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) net sold shares worth Rs 2,915.23 crore, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs) bought Rs 3,542.93 crore worth of stocks on April 22, provisional data from the NSE showed.

Domestic and International Events

• India’s exports of cut and polished diamonds in 2023/24 experienced a significant decline of 27.5% compared to the previous year, totaling $15.97 billion. This downturn was attributed to sluggish demand from key markets including the United States, China, and the United Arab Emirates, as reported by a prominent trade body on Monday. Consequently, the decline in exports compelled the world’s largest diamond polisher to reduce imports of rough diamonds by 18% from the previous year, amounting to $14.27 billion in the fiscal year ending March 31, according to the Gem and Jewellery Export Promotion Council (GJEPC).

• Japan’s manufacturing sector witnessed contraction but approached the neutral point in April. The au Jibun Bank flash Japan Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) increased to 49.9 in April from 48.2 in March, as reported by Reuters.

• Gold prices experienced a decline of more than 2 percent, reaching a one-week low on Monday, amid easing concerns about a broader conflict in the Middle East. This led investors to scale back safe-haven trades in favor of riskier assets like equities.

• Oil prices saw a slight increase in early Asian trading on Tuesday, reversing losses from the previous session, as investors continued to evaluate the geopolitical risks in the Middle East.