Benchmark indices firmed up once again in early afternoon trade. Investors across the globe were monitoring the US Presidential elections results. At 12:20 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, spurted 347.58 points or 0.86% at 40,608.71. The Nifty 50 index advanced 93.20 point or 0.79% to 11,906.70.
In the broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index rose 0.27% while the S&P BSE Small-Cap index gained 0.32%.
The market breadth was positive. On the BSE, 1,150 shares rose and 1,073 shares fell. A total of 159 shares were unchanged.
US Election 2020:
In-person voting is still on in many parts of the United States. But, early results are pouring in from states where polling has closed. So far, Democratic Party candidate and former vice president Joe Biden has won 224 electoral votes while President Donald Trump has won 213 electoral votes. A candidate needs 270 electoral votes to win the election.
The US Dow Jones Futures were currently up 16 points and Nasdaq futures were up 253.37 points.
Coronavirus Update:
Total COVID-19 confirmed cases worldwide stood at 4,74,05,395 with 12,13,735 deaths. India reported 5,33,787 active cases of COVID-19 infection and 1,23,611 deaths while 76,56,478 patients have been discharged, according to the data from the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India.
Derivatives:
The NSE's India VIX, a gauge of market's expectation of volatility over the near term, slumped 7.12% to 22.5125. The Nifty November 2020 futures were trading at 11,897.95, at a discount of 2.55 points compared with the spot at 11,900.50.
The Nifty option chain for 26 November 2020 expiry showed maximum Call OI of 17.87 lakh contracts at the 12,000 strike price. Maximum Put OI of 25.60 lakh contracts was seen at 11,000 strike price.
Buzzing Index:
The Nifty Pharma index was up 2.51% to 11,646.05. The index added 4.21% in two sessions.
Aurobindo Pharma (up 2.26%), Cipla (up 2.22%), Divis' Laboratories (up 2.18%) and Alkem Laboratories (up 1.79%) advanced.
Sun Pharmaceutical Industries was up 5.66%. The counter saw a strong demand after the drug major posted Q2 September 2020 results on Tuesday (3 November 2020). The company's consolidated net profit surged 70.36% to Rs 1,812.79 crore on a 6.41% increase in revenue from operations to Rs 8,458.77 crore in Q2 September 2020 over Q2 September 2019.
Consolidated profit before tax (PBT) soared 33.75% to Rs 1,917.18 crore in Q2 September 2020 as against Rs 1,433.38 crore in Q2 September 2019. Current tax expense for the quarter fell 3.36% to Rs 257.08 crore as against Rs 266.03 crore in Q2 September 2019. The firm said it continues to monitor the impact of COVID-19 on its business, including its impact on customers, supply-chain, employees and logistics.
Eris Lifesciences rose 2.74%. The company reported 16.2% rise in consolidated net profit to Rs 107.7 crore on 16% increase in net sales to Rs 325.27 crore in Q2 FY21 over Q2 FY20. Profit before tax (PBT) in Q2 September 2020 stood at Rs 115.84 crore, up by 12.7% from Rs 102.77 crore in Q2 September 2019. Tax expense during the quarter declined 19.4% year-on-year (YoY) to Rs 81 crore.
Stocks in Spotlight:
Ramco Systems dropped 4.17%. The company's consolidated net profit surged 19.39% to Rs 16.93 crore on 10.03% increase in net sales to Rs 159.82 crore in Q2 September 2020 over Q1 June 2020. Profit before tax (PBT) rose 3.24% to Rs 28.98 crore in Q2 September 2020 as against Rs 28.08 crore in Q1 June 2020. Current tax expense for the quarter gained 1.83% to Rs 5 crore as against Rs 4.91 crore paid in Q1 June 2020.
The quarterly order bookings stood at $26.53 million, registering a 24% Q-o-Q (quarter-on-quarter) growth. Five 'Million-Dollar-Plus' deals have been signed during the quarter. The overall borrowings reduced to Rs 49.75 crore in Q2 FY21 from Rs 75 crore in Q1 FY21.
NMDC fell 0.18%. The state-owned iron ore miner hiked prices of iron ore (lump ore and fines) with effect from Wednesday, 4 November 2020. NMDC increased lump ore prices by 4.35% to Rs 3,600 per tonne in November 2020 from Rs 3,450 per tonne in October 2020. Prices of fines were hiked by 4.75% to Rs 3,310 per tonne in November 2020 as against Rs 3,160 per tonne in October 2020. The new rates came into effect from 4 November 2020.
Transport Corporation of India slipped 0.20%. The company's consolidated net profit fell 2.5% to Rs 37.27 crore on 1.8% increase in net sales to Rs 696.89 crore in Q2 September 2020 over Q2 September 2019. Profit before tax (PBT) soared 36% to Rs 45.66 crore in Q2 September 2020 as against Rs 33.57 crore in Q2 September 2019. Current tax expense for the quarter jumped 38.7% to Rs 8.25 crore as against Rs 5.95 crore in Q2 September 2019.
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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
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