Global jitters

Nifty50: 17,374 ▼231 (-1.3%) 

Sensex: 58,152 ▼773 (-1.3%)

• Markets opened with a gap-down and the weakness prevailed throughout the day.
• 45 of the Nifty50 stocks closed in red indicating broad-based selling pressure.
• Most international indices were trading lower today, after US inflation reached 7.5%, a 40-year high.
• On Monday, India’s retail inflation data will be released, and the street is expecting an uptick.

All the Nifty sectoral indices closed in red. Nifty IT index (-2.7%) and PSU Bank (-2.0%) were top losers

For more updates on F&O, click here.

Here are the top stories of the day.

Divi’s Labs puts up strong show

Hyderabad-based pharma company Divi’s Labs reported a 92% year-on-year surge in net profit to ₹902 crore. Further, its revenue rose 47% year-on-year to ₹2,493 crore, driven largely by strong growth in contract manufacturing as well as larger contribution from molnupiravir, an antiviral drug used in the treatment of Covid-19.

The company managed to reduce its cost of raw materials, employee costs and other expenses as a percentage of operating revenues during the quarter, which helped to boost its bottom line. The stock jumped nearly 4% soon after the results were announced but closed nearly flat.

Hero Moto’s profit skids

The leading two-wheeler maker’s standalone revenues fell 19% year-on-year to ₹7,883 crore due to a 30% fall in the number of units sold during the December quarter. This coupled with lower other income resulted in a 37% slide in net profit to ₹686 crore.

The company mentioned that its performance was impacted by higher raw material costs and softer demand due to the pandemic. However, the management believes that higher budgetary allocation to capex and support to rural sectors could help improve demand for two-wheelers going forward. Meanwhile, its stock has been consolidating since last month.

MTAR Tech’s Q3 profit surges

Defence and aerospace components maker reported a net profit of ₹13 crore YoY, up 50%. The sharp rise in the bottomline was aided by 41% growth in its revenues which stood at ₹78 crore.

Meanwhile, the exports increased 151% and contributed about 40% of total revenues. The management believes that domestic orders from civil nuclear power and defence sectors are expected to be fast-tracked over the coming quarters. Its current order book stands at ₹600 crore, about over 2 times its FY21 revenues. 

IPO Corner

According to reports, the draft red herring prospectus (DRHP) of LIC’s mega IPO will be filed over the weekend. The board of LIC met today to consider the proposed listing. At, reportedly, over ₹15 lakh crore estimated valuation, LIC IPO is all set to be the biggest-ever stock listing in India.

Good to know

What is a target market?

A target market is a group of consumers which the company identifies to sell its products. It involves breaking down the entire market into segments and planning marketing strategies accordingly. The target market can be broadly classified by age range, location, income and lifestyle. In simple words, not all products can be consumed by all customers. In order to attract a particular segment of the market, the companies at times modify the product according to the target market.   

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