Market Movers: Wockhardt, Prestige soar; 124 stocks giving ‘sell’ signals

Wockhardt shares surged over 18 per cent on Monday, as the company returned to black after three years having posted Rs 9 crore profit for December quarter.

Prestige Estate reported a two-fold jump in profit and the stock rose 2.05 per cent. Dr Reddy’s Laboratories reported a Rs 570 crore loss because of a one-time impairment and shares rose 6.31 per cent.

HDFC twins dragged BSE Sensex as the 30-share pack dived 458 points to end at 41,155. Its NSE counterpart Nifty slipped 129 points to 12,119.

"The catastrophic effect of coronavirus is impacting global financial markets, raising fears of a slowdown in the global economy. In India, investors are turning cautious amid selling pressure in the global markets and this weekend’s Budget,” said Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Financial Services.

Here is a lowdown on the movers and shakers of Monday’s session on Dalal Street:

Prestige rises after two-fold jump in profit
Prestige Estates Projects reported over two-fold jump in consolidated net profit at Rs 161.8 crore for December quarter and raised Rs 437 crore through preferential allotment of shares to Singapore sovereign wealth fund GIC. Shares of the company gained 2.05 per cent to Rs 389.05.

Mahindra Lifespace trips
Shares of Mahindra Lifespace Developers clipped 3.04 per cent to Rs 399.90 after the company reported a 91 per cent decline in December quarter profit at Rs 1.81 crore.

Jaiprakash Power up 5%
Shares of Jaiprakash Power gained 4.79 per cent to Rs 1.97 after it appointed R K Porwal as the company’s Chief Financial Officer. Porwal is a chartered accountant besides holding masters' degree in commerce and LLB.

DRL reports Rs 570 cr loss
Dr Reddy's Laboratories suffered nearly Rs 570 crore loss for the quarter ended December 31 against Rs 485 crore profit after tax during the corresponding period of FY19. Shares of the company jumped 6.31 per cent to Rs 3,188.95.

BSE inks pact with ICE
BSE said it has signed a licensing agreement with Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) to use its Brent index as the settlement benchmark for the Indian bourse's rupee-denominated Brent futures contracts. The stock dipped 0.69 per cent to Rs 542.40.

Nitco’s Alibaug unit shut
Tiles maker Nitco said a lockout has been declared at its tiles manufacturing unit in Alibaug for a temporary period. Shares of the company dipped 2.95 per cent to Rs 29.65 following the announcement.

Divi’s Labs to reappoint CEO
Divi's Laboratories has sought shareholders' approval for the re-appointment of Kiran S Divi as the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the company. Shares of the company closed 0.16 per cent up at Rs 1,915.15.

Biocon gets 5 observations
Biocon said the US health regulator conducted a pre-approval inspection and good manufacturing practice (GMP) examination of the API manufacturing facility and has issued a Form 483, with five observations. Shares of the company slipped 2.26 per cent to Rs 287.80.

MHRA inspects Lupin plants
Lupin said the UK Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA), the regulatory agency of the United Kingdom, has completed the inspection at its three manufacturing plants in the country. Shares of the company added 1.59 per cent to Rs 751.85.

Sumitomo debuts on bourses
Sumitomo Chemical India, the merged entity of Excel Crop Care and agrochemicals player in India, debuted on the bourses. The stock jumped 5 per cent to Rs 204.75 on the first day.

Wockhardt back in black
Wockhardt reported quarterly profit for the first time in three years. Net profit came in at Rs 9 crore compared with Rs 71 crore loss in previous quarter. Sales during Q3FY20 stood at Rs 869 crore, down 17 per cent from the corresponding quarter of previous year. Shares of the company jumped 18 per cent to Rs 352.90.

Voda Idea papers downgraded
Shares of Vodafone Idea dropped 3.97 per cent to Rs 5.81 after rating agencies India Ratings and Crisil downgraded ratings on Rs 3,500 crore NCDs to below investment grade.

Volatility surges further
India VIX, the measure of volatility in the market, surged 10.92 per cent to reach above 17-mark. The index stood at 17.26 at the end of the day.

Smallcaps end flat
Nifty Smallcap index outperformed its peers and closed 0.03 per cent higher at 6,346 on a day when every major index closed lower. Nifty Midcap was down 0.36 per cent at 18,291 while Nifty500 lost 0.83 per cent to 9,999.60.

Nifty Pharma index sole gainer
Nifty Pharma was the only gainer among sectoral indices on NSE as it added 1.47 per cent to 8416. Nifty Metal was the biggest loser, down 3.09 per cent to 2,709. Nifty PSU Bank, Nifty Financial Services and Nifty FMCG were among other big losers.

HDFC twins drag Sensex
HDFC Bank and HDFC were the biggest negative contributors to Sensex as they together bled 216 points. RIL, Kotak Mahindra Bank and SBI were other major culprits that shed 102 points.

124 stock flash ‘sell’ signals
Nearly 125 stocks crossed below signal line on MACD indicator and indicated ‘sell’. They include JSPL, ITC, Canara Bank, PNB Housing Finance, Andhra Petro, PTC India, NOCIL and Power Grid, among others.