Pharma shares, Nestle, Bajaj Auto among buzzing stocks as SENSEX, NIFTY50 drop 1% in noon deals

The Indian benchmark indices, SENSEX and NIFTY50, were trading in the red during the afternoon session on Wednesday, July 22, amid weak global cues and escalating tensions in West Asia as crude oil prices surged.

Domestically, a weak rupee and a sell-off in realty and PSU banking stocks also impacted investor sentiment. The sentiment also remained subdued as US President Donald Trump proposed phased tariffs of up to 200% on generic drug imports into the United States following a two-year tariff-free period.

Furthermore, India VIX, the volatility gauge, spiked 6% during the trading session.

The SENSEX plunged as much as 1.33% to hit an intraday low of 76,641.19. Meanwhile, the NIFTY50 tanked as much as 1.22% to touch the session’s low of 23,961.40.

At 1:30 PM, the S&P BSE SENSEX declined by 754.39 points, or 0.97%, to trade at 76,715.72, while NSE’s NIFTY50 stood at 23,983.70, marking a 204-point, or 0.84% drop.

Buzzing stocks on July 22: Check list

In his post on Truth Social, Trump said, "Effective August 1st, 2026, all Generic Drugs being brought into the United States will continue to have a TARIFF of ZERO PERCENT for a two year period of time, after which the TARIFF will be raised to 100% for a one year period of time, and 200% thereafter. This is done in order to RESHORE Generic Pharmaceutical Production into America, with a penalty to those Companies that decide not to build Plant and Equipment within the stated period of time given to them."

"The objective of this Policy is to protect the people of the United States. The Policy on Patented, Branded, or Innovative Drugs, which has been so successful, will remain as is. Pharmaceutical Facilities are being built, at a level never seen before, all over the United States of America. Thank you for your attention to this matter! President DONALD J. TRUMP," the post added.

Shares of Nestle India soared as much as 4.07% to hit a 52-week high of ₹1,510 per unit on the National Stock Exchange (NSE) on Wednesday, July 22, after the earnings were reported.

The firm recorded a standalone net profit of ₹975.12 crore during the quarter under review, marking a 47.92% year-on-year (YoY) surge from ₹659.23 crore in the first quarter of the 2025-26 fiscal year (Q1 FY26).

At an operational level, its EBITDA (earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation), also known as operating profit, stood at ₹1,538 crore for the reporting period, reflecting a 39.82% YoY growth from ₹1,100 crore in the year-ago period.

Bandhan Bank stock tumbled 18.8% to hit an intraday low of ₹169.56 per equity share on July 22, as stock market investors focused on the company management’s conservative guidance and margin concerns despite registering healthy growth in the April to June quarter earnings for the fiscal year 2026-27.

In the institutional lender’s earnings call, Bandhan Bank’s management decided to cut its exit return on assets (RoA) guidance down by 20 basis points to a range of 1.2% to 1.4%, from its earlier 1.6% to 1.8% levels.

Despite a healthy Q1 earnings show, the bank stock crashed on Wednesday’s market as investors reacted to the conservative performance rather than the year-on-year growth of the company's profits in the June quarter.

Shares of Bajaj Auto surged as much as 5.7% to hit a 52-week high of ₹10,999 per unit on the NSE, as the automobile manufacturer posted a healthy increase in quarterly earnings performance on strong sales growth.

NSE data also showed that Bajaj Auto’s consolidated net profit surged 46% to ₹3,225.63 crore in the April to June quarter of the financial year ending 2026-27, compared year-on-year (YoY) with ₹2,210.44 crore in the same period a year ago.

The automaker’s revenue from core operations advanced 65% to ₹20,870.23 crore in the first quarter of the current fiscal year, compared to ₹12,646.59 crore in the same quarter of the previous financial year.

In a post-earnings media interaction, Bajaj Auto Ltd Executive Director Rakesh Sharma said that the company would have posted better performance in the previous quarter but for factors such as inflation, supply chain issues, and serious logistics issues, which “impaired” availability by 10-15%.

The stock of TVS Motor Company climbed 5% after it reported its highest-ever quarterly revenue of ₹13,896 crore, up 38% from ₹10,081 crore in the corresponding quarter of the previous fiscal, the earnings release showed.

TVS Motor also posted a record EBITDA of ₹1,779 crore, marking a 41% year-on-year increase from ₹1,260 crore. Its EBITDA margin improved by 30 basis points to 12.8%, compared with 12.5% in the year-ago period.

Its profit after tax (PAT) rose 51% to ₹1,174 crore from ₹776 crore in the June quarter of FY26. The company said the reported PAT includes a fair valuation gain of ₹150 crore on investments, compared with a fair valuation gain of ₹28 crore in the corresponding quarter last year.

MPS Limited shares rallied 19.99% to hit a 52-week high of ₹2,564.50 apiece on Wednesday, July 22, after the publishing company reported a strong quarter and incorporated a wholly owned subsidiary.

The firm’s board of directors has approved the incorporation of a wholly owned subsidiary (WOS) in Singapore. The move is aimed at expanding the company’s international presence, subject to necessary regulatory approvals and compliance with applicable laws.

MPS will invest up to ₹1 crore in the proposed subsidiary by subscribing to its share capital in one or more tranches, the company said. The investment will be carried out in line with the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA), overseas investment regulations, RBI guidelines, and relevant regulations in Singapore.

Apollo Micro Systems stock surged as much as 4% to touch an intraday high of ₹406 apiece on Wednesday, July 22, after the defence firm bagged an order from the Indian Navy for a semi-submersible autonomous vessel.

“Apollo Micro Systems Limited has been shortlisted and awarded a Make-II Prototype Sanction Order (PSO) by the Indian Navy, in recognition of the Company's established capabilities in indigenous Naval Maritime Electronic Warfare,” the defence firm said in a regulatory filing.

The project involves the design, development, and prototype demonstration of the Semi-Submersible Autonomous Vessel for Intelligence, Operations and Reconnaissance (SAVIOR-ASW) under the Make-II category, the company said.

SAVIOR-ASW is an unmanned, semi-submersible maritime platform designed for persistent anti-submarine warfare (ASW) surveillance, capable of autonomous operations for extended durations using advanced acoustic sensors, AI/ML-based target classification, and encrypted multi-channel communication systems.

Mahindra & Mahindra Financial Services (M&M Finance) shares extended their rally for a second trading day on Wednesday, July 22, rising as much as 10% as investors focused on the non-banking financial company’s (NBFC) healthy Q1 earnings performance.

The NBFC firm announced its Q1 earnings update during the final hour of the afternoon market session on Tuesday, July 21, after which the company shares ended 8.4% higher at ₹349.85, compared to ₹322.55 apiece at the previous trading close.

M&M Finance posted a 70% rise in its standalone net profit to ₹898.65 crore in the April to June quarter results for the financial year 2026-27, compared year-on-year (YoY) with ₹529.50 crore in the same period a year ago.

NSE filings showed that M&M Finance’s interest income for the June quarter surged 11% to ₹4,620.87 crore in the current fiscal year, compared with ₹4,164.59 crore in the same period a year earlier.

The stock of Paras Defence jumped as much as 2% to touch an intraday high of ₹1,244 apiece on the NSE on July 22 after subsidiary Paras Semiconductors signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Department of Science and Technology acting through MP State Electronics Development Corporation (MPSeDC).

With an investment worth approximately ₹6,200 crore, Paras Semiconductors will set up a greenfield advanced IC packaging OSAT facility in Indore-Ujjain, Madhya Pradesh.

The facility will undertake advanced packaging operations, including 3D heterogeneous integration, 2.5D/3D advanced packaging, hybrid bonding, ultra-high-density fan-out packaging, chiplet integration, wafer bumping, flip-chip assembly, testing and reliability.