Paytm, Varun Beverages, LIC among buzzing stocks as SENSEX jumps over 500 pts, NIFTY50 above 23,800

The Indian benchmark indices, SENSEX and NIFTY50, were trading in the green zone during the afternoon session on Friday, May 22, after opening flat with a positive bias in the morning. It was bolstered by buying in private bank and financial services stocks.

Furthermore, a decline in crude oil prices, easing geopolitical tensions, and an appreciation in the rupee, among others, led to a surge in the market in the afternoon.

The SENSEX gained as much as 0.83% to hit an intraday high of 75,810.97. Meanwhile, the NIFTY50 touched the session’s peak of 23,835.65.

At 1:10 PM, the S&P BSE SENSEX soared by 576.51 points, or 0.77%, to 75,759.87. NSE’s NIFTY50 stood at 23,823.40, marking a 168.70 point, or 0.71% jump.

Buzzing stocks on May 22: Check list

Shares of One 97 Communications, the parent company of Paytm, fell as much as 3.92% to hit an intraday low of ₹1,110.20 apiece on the National Stock Exchange (NSE) on Friday, May 22, following reports of large transactions in the block deal window.

The report further stated that the proposed deal carries a 30-day lock-up period for the seller.

The stock of the Central Bank of India declined as much as 6.5% to hit an intraday low of ₹31.72 per equity share on the NSE on Friday, May 22, as the government’s 4% stake sale opened for subscription by institutional investors.

The Offer For Sale (OFS) of Central Bank of India also includes a greenshoe option to sell an additional 4% stake. Retail investors will be able to bid in the share sale offer on Monday, May 25.

The floor price of ₹31 a share is 8.58% lower than the stock's Thursday closing price of ₹33.92 on the NSE.

By selling an 8% stake in the PSU bank, the government will raise ₹2,456 crore.

Shares of Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) rose on Friday, May 22, after the company's earnings for the latest fourth quarter were above street estimates.

LIC recorded a 23.18% increase in standalone net profit to ₹23,420.43 crore in the March quarter of the financial year 2025-26, helped by core business and return on investment. India's biggest insurer had earned a post-tax profit of ₹19,012.79 crore a year back.

The total income advanced 13.81% to ₹2,53,591.83 crore in Q4 FY26 from ₹2,22,805.49 crore in the year-ago period, LIC said in a regulatory filing.

The company's board of directors recommended a final dividend of ₹10 per share of ₹10 each for the financial year 2025-26, subject to shareholders' approval at the upcoming Annual General Meeting (AGM). The record date has been set as June 25.

Max Healthcare stock declined 7% on the NSE on Friday, May 22, a day after its March quarter earnings failed to enthuse investors.

Max Healthcare post-market hours on Thursday said that its net profit at the end of the fourth quarter of the financial year 2025-26 came in at ₹342 crore, up 7.2% from ₹319 crore in the same period last year.

Its revenue from operations advanced 12% to 2,143 crore at the end of the March quarter compared with ₹1,910 crore in the year-ago period.

The company reported stable operational performance as its earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA), also known as operating profit, jumped 19% to ₹607 crore from ₹512 crore, and its EBITDA margin improved by 150 basis points to 28.3%.

Varun Beverages shares gained as much as 3.88% to hit a 52-week high of ₹540 apiece, after the global brand, PepsiCo, extended the company’s contract term, while also updating the business restrictions, according to an exchange filing.

In the NSE filing, Varun Beverages disclosed that PepsiCo has extended the company’s ‘exclusive bottling appointment and trademark license’ to April 30, 2049, from its earlier expiry of April 30, 2039.

PepsiCo also lifted the earlier restrictions on Varun Beverages, now allowing the company to carry out any activity other than the special bottling operations of the global giant’s India business.

The stock of Honasa Consumer, the parent company of Mamaearth, rallied nearly 12% to hit a 52-week high of ₹402.80 per equity share on May 22, after the company announced all-around strong growth in Q4 FY26.

The Q4FY26 quarter witnessed the highest-ever revenue of ₹682 crore, up 28% YoY, along with the highest-ever EBITDA of ₹77 crore, up 185% YoY. Similarly, the profit after tax also soared 175% YoY to ₹69 crore with a PAT margin of 10.5%. The strong growth was driven by 30% jump in volumes during the quarter.

Beyond profitability metrics, the company achieved a negative working capital cycle of 14 days, meaning that the company is collecting upfront cash from its consumers & suppliers without any delay, which indicates superior health for the business.

For the fiscal year of 2026, the company’s revenue jumped 20% YoY to ₹2,479 crore, and the gross profit margin stood at 71.2%. The EBITDA for the year stood at ₹231 crore, up 237% YoY. Lastly, the FY26 profitability jumped 175% to ₹200 crore.