India markets end flat

Fri, 30 May Closing

   Previous Close   

   Pre-Open   

   09:30 am   

   11:30 am   

   01:30 pm   

After a volatile trading session which saw the Indian benchmark indices struggling to stay afloat, the indices finally closed marginally lower today. Ahead of the release of GDP numbers today and monetary policy scheduled next week, the investors are adopting a cautious approach. Stocks from sectors such as consumer durables, oil and gas and bankex were a drag. Both the BSE Mid Cap and the BSE Small Cap indices outperformed and were up by 0.4% and 0.3% respectively. The BSE-Sensex closed lower by 17 points. The NSE-Nifty too was seen down by 6 points.

On the global front, most of the Asian indices have closed the day on a weak note. The European indices have been witnessing mixed performance. The rupee was trading at Rs 59.06 to the dollar at the time of writing.

Barring few such as Mahindra and Mahindra (M&M), Escorts, Ashok Leyland and Bajaj Auto, most of the automobiles' stocks closed the day in the red. Stocks of TVS Motors and Tube Investments led the pack of losers. The utility vehicle maker Mahindra and Mahindra has reported a 0.9% YoY growth in net profits at Rs 8.97 bn for the quarter ended March 2014. Tax reversals and income from sale of investments drove the profitability for the company. The company has merged Mahindra Trucks & Buses (MTBL) with itself in the March quarter. The revenues have grown by 5% YoY to Rs 110 bn during 4QFY14. The adjusted operating margins were reported at 14%. The revenues from automotive segment have increased to Rs 78.1 bn during 4QFY14. The tractor segment has grown by 11.7% YoY to Rs 31.9 bn during 4QFY14. The margins have expanded by 1.8% to 17.7% during the quarter. In the wake of good monsoons, the domestic tractor sales had jumped 14.4% YoY. The management believes that despite the El Nino risks, the pick-up in business is quite likely as FY15 is expected to witness infrastructure and manufacturing-led economic recovery.

Software stocks have closed the day on a mixed note today. Notably, Mphasis Ltd and NIIT Ltd have led the pack of gainers, whereas Moser-Baer India and CMC Ltd have led the pack of losers. According to a leading daily, Executive Chairman N R Narayana Murthy of the technology major Infosys Ltd believes that the best is yet to come for the company. Mr Murthy has cautioned employees on the revamp in leadership and that Infosys is embarked upon a new journey for the betterment of employees and the clients alike. He has assured that the top-level management changes have been in the interest of the company as a whole. Moreover, the search for the new non-founding CEO is in progress. In the meanwhile, the current interim CEO SD Shibulal and Executive Vice Chairman S. Gopalakrishnan along with Mr Murthy will continue to run the company in the right direction. Moreover, in its letter to employees Mr Murthy has assured that it will continue to deliver its commitments towards clients and employees and retain the goodwill of investors. The high profile exits from the company lately had raised concerns over leadership at Infosys. Senior management exit at Infosys may not have any short term impact on financials of the company.

Will the Infosys management changes have an impact on the company's earnings and stock performance? Kindly share your views on the Equitymaster Club.