Dead Presidents! - India Equity Research: May 7, 2007

Key indices were marginally down today on profit sales in shares of technology companies and index heavyweight Reliance Industries. The session was volatile as investors booked profits after the 1.5% rise in the previous session and on caution ahead of the weekend. Shares of cement companies were top Nifty gainers after the government Thursday modified the duty structure for the commodity and replaced the fixed Rs 600 per 1 tn excise duty with a 12% ad valorem rate on retail sales price. ACC and Grasim Industries were up 2% each, at Rs 869 and Rs 2,536 respectively. At 10:39AM, Sensex was 14060.10, down 18.11 points or 0.1%. Nifty was at 4145.15, down 5.70 points or 0.1%. The CNX Midcap Index was up 0.4% and S&P CNX 500 Index was up 0.2%. On BSE, advances equalled declines in the morning. Shares of technology companies were major laggards on Nifty as investors booked profits after two sessions of gains as the rupee strengthened against the dollar. Satyam Computer Services at Rs 472 and Wipro at Rs 564 were down 1% each. Reliance Industries, down 2% at Rs 1,595, was the worst hit on Nifty on profit sales after rising 4% in the previous session. SBI was up 2% at Rs 1,149 on hopes the bank would report robust Jan-Mar earnings. In the mid trading session, indices were down nearly 1% amid choppy trade on profit sales and as heavyweight Reliance Industries fell 2.5% on a court order preventing it from selling natural gas committed to Reliance Natural Resources to a third party. Market briefly recovered and was up 0.2% after inflation rate for week to Apr 21 fell to 5.77% from 6.09% week ago and 5.87% estimated, but succumbed to profit sales later. At around 1.05PM, Nifty was at 4123.50, down 27.35 points or 0.7%. Sensex was at 13975.91, down 103.47 points or 0.7%. Consumer durables shares rose on removal of customs duty on refrigerated trucks used for transporting perishable food items. Technology shares fell on appreciation in rupee and as tax on employee stock options will remain. Satyam Computer Services was down 2%. Shares of HLL were up 1.4% at Rs 198.50 after Finance Minister P. Chidambaram said the government will not re impose customs duty on palm oil till its price stabilises. Shares of IndusInd Bank were up 6.9% at Rs 48.50 on talk the bank is likely to sell some stake to a private entity. Shares of PSL were up 4.6% at Rs 228 on news its joint venture with the U.S.-based A&L Group has got 382 ha land in Mississippi, U.S., to set up a greenfield facility for making steel pipes. Key indices shed 1% today amid volatility, with Sensex closing below the level of 14000 on profit sales and index heavyweight Reliance Industries declining by nearly 3%. Shares recovered briefly and were up 0.2% after the inflation rate for the week to Apr 21 fell to 5.77% from 6.09% week ago, lower than the estimate of 5.87%, but shed gains soon after No. of Scrips Value (Crs.) Advances 410 4726 Declines 644 4654 Unchanged 27 20 Total 1081 9400 Positive cues from Asian markets could also not give support to domestic equities. Key Asian indices touched new highs, buoyed by firm metal prices. Sensex ended at 13934.27, down 143.94 points, or 1.0% from Thursday. Intraday, it moved between 13912.92 and 14189.21 points. Nifty closed at 4117.35, down 33.50 points, or 0.8%. Intraday, it moved between 4109.70 and 4180.90 points. Turnover on BSE and NSE combined was roughly Rs 136.7 bn, almost unchanged from Rs 137.5 bn on Thursday. The CNX Midcap Index was up 0.2%, while the S&P CNX 500 Index was down 0.6%. Reliance Industries fell on profit sales after the Bombay High Court Thursday restrained the company from selling 28 mn cu m per day of natural gas - committed to Reliance Natural Resources - to a third party. The RIL stock ended 2.6% down at Rs 1,584. Shares of information technology companies also declined, as investors booked profits with the rupee appreciating against the dollar. Satyam Computer Services was down 2% at Rs 470, while TCS shed 1% at Rs 1,273. BPCL, down 3% at Rs 336, was the worst-hit among Nifty stocks on profit sales. The stock had gained 4% on Thursday. BPCL will sell around Rs 7 bn worth of oil bonds in the secondary market today. HDFC ended 2.5% down at Rs 1,638. HDFC Thursday reported Jan-Mar net profit of Rs 5.5 bn, up 29% YoY. Cement shares, which were top Nifty gainers earlier in the day, ended down on profit sales. Grasim Industries and Ambuja Cements ended up 1% each, at Rs 2,475 and Rs 120. ACC shares managed to end up 1% at Rs 859, but off the day's high of Rs 880. Cement shares rose in early trade after the government Thursday replaced the fixed excise duty of Rs 600 per 1 tn with a 12% ad valorem duty to be paid on the retail sales price of cement. GAIL India, up 4% at Rs 310, was top Nifty gainer. Index heavyweight, ONGC, ended up 1% at Rs 929. The company Thursday said it will resume talks on the Barmer refinery with the Rajasthan government. Cipla shares ended 3% up at Rs 217 on value buying. The stock has fallen 16% since the company on Apr 27 reported a 34% YoY decline in Jan-Mar net profit due to the rise in raw material cost. Hindalco Industries rose 2% at Rs 148 on a 15% YoY rise in Jan-Mar net profit at Rs 7.2 bn. Reliance Natural Resources gained 3% at Rs 27 on hopes it will get more than the required gas from Reliance Industries, and can sell the excess gas in the open market at a higher rate, Shares of Videocon Industries, Unitech, and Aditya Birla Nuvo ended up 3-7% after they were included in the MSCI India index. Tech stocks ended mixed trend. TechM was up at Rs 1648.90 with volumes of Rs 236.99 crs, TCS was down at Rs 1273.05 with volumes of Rs 228.43 crs, Infosys was down at Rs 2071.90 with volumes of Rs 190.12 crs, and Rolta closed up at Rs 439.90 with volumes of Rs 71.96 crs. Pharma stocks witnessed mixed trend. Cipla was up at Rs 217.35 with volumes of Rs 61.53 crs, Ranbaxy closed down at Rs 381.75 with volumes of Rs 28.69 crs, Dr Reddy was up at Rs 719.05 with volumes of Rs 26.51 crs, and Sun Pharma closed down at Rs 1001.45 with volumes of Rs 16.68 crs. Banking stocks showed mixed trend. In the Public Sector banks SBI closed up at Rs 1128.30 with volumes Rs 157.72 crs & Bank Of India closed down at Rs 194.35 with volumes Rs 58.87 crs. In the private sector ICICI Bank closed down at Rs 855.85 with volume of Rs 197.15 crs & UTI Bank closed up at Rs 480.10 with volumes of Rs 138.46 crs. Auto Stocks ended down with exception. Tata Motors closed down at Rs 731.50 with volumes of Rs.100.25 crs & M&M closed down at Rs 790.05 with volumes of Rs 55.82 crs. While in the 2 wheeler segment stocks, Baja Auto closed up at Rs 2567.40 with volumes of Rs 63.77 crs & Hero Honda closed down at Rs 699.45 with volumes of Rs 13.70 crs. Cement Stocks witnessed positive trend with exception. GACL closed down at Rs 120.25 with volumes of Rs 81.94 crs, India Cement closed up at Rs 184.20 with volumes of Rs 69.59 crs, ACC closed up at Rs 859.50 with volumes of Rs 55.15 crs and Birla Jute closed up at Rs 244 w i t h v o l u mes of Rs 4.08 crs. Nifty ended at 4117 down by 34 points.

CM Online - Vol 22 Iss 05 May 07 – May 20, 2007

Citigroup - Ashok Leyland, Asia Investigator - Sell in May ?, Abhishek Industries, Market Watch

Ashok Leyland

Asia Investigator - Sell in May ?

Abhishek Industries

Market Watch

Ashish Chugh - Hidden Gems - May 7 2007

Market Close: Profit taking with no triggers ahead !

Strong global cues and robust quarterly earning lead the market to start the week on a bullish note. IT, Banking, Metals, Oil & gas and Cement sector stocks bagged the show in the opening trades. Sensex pared some of the gains due to profit booking and slipped into the red as it was unable to sustain at higher levels. Market traded flat on lack of buying interest in the investors. Selling gained momentum in the noon trades and the index traded into the negative zone. Selling was conspicuous as rising rupee concern pinned IT stocks down and the BSE IT Index was down over 40 points. Midcaps and smallcaps did not do a whole lot and ended lower in negative breadth. FMCG and Banking sector ended flat. Both Asian market had a strong start while European markets traded in green

Sensex closed down by 55 points at 13879.25. Weighing on the Sensex were losses in Wipro (554.7,-2 percent), Dr Reddys (703.55,-2 percent), Satyam (460.35,-2 percent), Hindalco (144.95,-2 percent) and Infosys (2038.8,-2 percent). Losses were restricted by gains in Ranbaxy (389.7,+2 percent), RIL (1605.45,+1 percent), Hero Honda (704.3,+1 percent), Bharti Tele (822.65,+1 percent) and ACC (862.4,+0 percent).

The UP election results is what the markets are wary off. It is widely expected that the Congress will not win and that could lead to dilution of sound political decisions. The higher interest rates are biting into the growth and that has really hit badly across sectors. However we expect good news we believe will be on the inflation front. So its mixed and no runaway markets yet and markets will remain ranged.

Autoline Industries today reported its fourth quarter results. The company posted Q4 net profit at Rs 6.76 Cr and net sales at Rs 74 Cr. For FY07 it has reported net profit of Rs 15 Cr versus Rs 5 Cr and net sales of Rs 210 Cr as against Rs 111 Cr in FY06. the result was as per the market expectation. The margins are continuously improving but always get a differential of the earlier quarter as far as price increase in steel are concerned in the first quarter, which is a variable. So it is slightly more in the last quarter always 85% of the company's revenues came via business from Tata Motors for the fourth quarter and FY07. Autoline is in talk with a company called Detroit Engineered Products for 51% stake which is likely to be concluded in the near future. This is purely a design engineering company; they have developed a software tool which reduces designing time of a new vehicle or a new product by 90%. The stock ended up 4%.

The Auto sector ended weak. Decline in Ashok Leyland was despite its robust FY07 numbers. India's second largest manufacturer of commercial vehicles (CVs) reported its 4QFY07 and FY07 results. Riding on the boom in the CV industry the company has reported a 37% YoY rise in topline in FY07 and a marginally lower 35% YoY growth in bottomline. Operating margins were down by 50 basis points. However a more than two fold jump in other income and lower finance charges has helped suppress this slight decline in operating margins. Furthermore, if one excludes the extraordinary items the bottomline vaults by 49%, reflecting the buoyancy in its core operations. Margin pressure has also been faced by the company during 4QFY07 as the bottomline has been able to grow at a slower rate of 29% YoY over a 32% YoY growth in topline. Here again higher other income and lower finance charges have lent the bottomline some support. Ashok Leyland intends to foray into the market for airport passenger buses and has lined up three buses under the brand name Avion. Leyland currently operates airport passenger buses for national carrier Air-India and would sign agreements for similar services with other aircraft carriers this year. The stock ended marginally down.

Rashtriya Chemicals & Fertilizers Ltd (RCF) reported its 4th quarter & year ended March 31, 2007. The Unaudited results for the Quarter ended March 31, 2007: The Company has posted a net profit of Rs 33.31 Cr for the quarter ended March 31, 2007 as compared to Rs 79.72 Cr for the quarter ended March 31, 2006. Total Income (net of excise) has increased from Rs 860 Cr for the quarter ended March 31, 2006 to Rs 949.7 Cr for the quarter ended March 31, 2007. The Audited results for the Year ended March 31, 2007: The Company has posted a net profit of Rs 148.74 Cr for the year ended March 31, 2007 as compared to Rs 147.96 Cr for the year ended March 31, 2006. Total Income (net of excise) has increased from Rs 3114.89 Cr for the year ended March 31, 2006 to Rs 3572.97 Cr for the year ended March 31, 2007.The result beat market expectations and the stock closed up by 5%.

Technically Speaking: It was a down session for the day. Sensex touched intraday high of 14067 and low of 13861 levels. On the higher side resistance is now at 14025, 13935 levels. Support is seen at 13860, 13685 levels. Market turnover was pretty good at Rs 4474 Cr. Overall breadth was in favor of Declines as they stood at 1395 while Advances stood at 1194

IT scrips wage losing battle against rupee

The Sensex was extremely volatile throughout the day, as bulls and bears locked horns, with the latter emerging victorious. The benchmark has, over the past few days, found it difficult to stay abreast of the 14,000 milestone. Despite a strong show in the first half, the Sensex lost its way in the second half. Heavy selling brought about the downfall, led by fresh selling of IT pivotals.

The 30-share BSE Sensex lost 55.02 points (0.39%), to end at 13,879.25. It had opened with an upward gap, at 14,044.71, buoyed by strong demand for index pivotals, especially for Reliance Industries (RIL), with firm Asian markets providing the initial thrust. The benchmark Sensex also advanced to a high of 14,067.07, its low for the day being 13,861.38.

The S&P CNX Nifty lost 6.20 points (0.15%), to 4,111.15.

The total turnover on BSE amounted to Rs 4481.98 crore, while the total NSE F&O turnover amounted to Rs 22526.7 crore. Total market wide turnover was Rs 35653.72 crore.

The market-breadth, which reflects the condition of the broader market, turned negative on BSE as selling emerged for small and mid-cap stocks. On BSE, 1,395 shares declined as compared to 1,194 that advanced. Also, 61 stocks remained unchanged. The BSE Small-Cap Index closed at 7,020.11 down 0.2%, while the BSE Mid-Cap Index ended at 5,844.36, down 0.3% from its previous close.

Among the 30-Sensex pack, 22 declined while the rest advanced.

Wipro was the top-loser, down 2.36% to Rs 554, on a volume of 1.16 lakh shares. The BSE IT Index lost 1.4% to 5,013.47, and was the top loser among the sectoral indicies on BSE.

Other frontline IT pivotals were not spared either. Satyam Computers (down 2.15% to Rs 460.50) and Infosys Technologies (down 1.70% to Rs 2037) declined.

IT shares slipped following a rise in the rupee to a fresh nine-year high against the dollar on Monday, as the market tested how far the central bank would let it appreciate before intervening. By 9:14 IST, the partially convertible rupee was at 40.5450 per dollar, its highest level since May 1998, and stronger than Friday's close of 40.8450/8600.

The rupee's surge is a cause of concern for IT firms, as it directly impacts their revenue and profits, a lion's share of which is accounted for by exports.

Dr Reddy's (down 2% to Rs 705), Hindalco (down 2.29% to Rs 144.75) and Cipla (down 1.60% to Rs 214) were the other prominent losers.

On the other hand, Ranbaxy Laboratories was the top-gainer, up 2.11% to Rs 390, on a volume of 3.12 lakh shares. It had touched an intra-day high of Rs 392.10. The company is seen benefitting from a Brazilian move to overcome the patent on Merck's anti-AIDS drug. On Friday (4 May 2007), Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva announced invoking the compulsory licensing provision for pharmaceuticals under the World Trade Organisation's (WTO) agreement on intellectual property - the TRIPS (Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights) - to buy copycat versions of efavirenz from laboratories certified by the World Health Organisation.

Index heavyweight Reliance Industries (RIL) advanced 1.48% to Rs 1606, as 9.67 lakh shares changed hands on BSE. The scrip fluctuated in a range of Rs 1617.80 – Rs 1593.

Hero Honda (up 1.02% to Rs 704.90), Bharti Airtel (up 0.64% to Rs 823), and ACC (up 0.46% to Rs 863) were among the other eminent gainers.

Ratings major ICRA was the most active stock on BSE, with a turnover of Rs 397 crore. The stock surged 17.06% to Rs 958. Rival firm Crisil surged 5% (maximum limit) to Rs 3205.45.

ICRA was followed closely by Indiabulls (Rs 260 crore), Indiabulls Real Estate (Rs 192.22 crore) and Reliance Industries (Rs 155.58 crore).

Shares from the oil refining sector posted handsome gains on renewed buying, as global crude oil price has been falling sharply in the last few trading sessions. Crude oil fell for a sixth day, extending a 6.8% drop last week, because of ample US supplies and signs of a gasoline output rising as refiners return plants from maintenance.

Crude oil for June delivery fell as much as 31 cents, or 0.5%, to $61.62 a barrel in after-hours electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

The contract fell $1.26, or 2%, to $61.93 a barrel on 4 May, the lowest closing since 19 April 2007. Oil had its biggest weekly decline since the week ended 5 January 2007. Oil had reached a four-week high of $66.70 on 27 April 2007, as sliding US fuel stockpiles pushed gasoline futures to an eight- month high.

Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) gained 5% to Rs 464.60, HPCL gained 4% to Rs 289.90 and BPCL gained 4% to Rs 349. Led forth by RIL, the BSE Oil and Gas Index gained 1.1%.

The firmer rupee has reduced the crude import bill of oil marketing firms. This, in turn, has helped them contain under-recoveries from the sale of petrol, diesel, LPG and kerosene. Since the last cut in prices of petrol and diesel in mid-February, the rupee has risen over 8% against the dollar.

Metal producers were in demand on renewed buying, owing to firm metal prices on the London Metal Exchange (LME). The BSE Metal Index was the top-gainer from among sectoral indices, in early afternoon session of trade, but pared gains later. The BSE Metal Index surged to an intra-day high of 10,146.47, but settled 0.5% lower at 9,946.27.

Ispat Industries (up 14.37% to Rs 17.35), Jindal Steel & Power (down 1.10% to Rs 2888), JSW Steel (down 0.80% to Rs 598), Sterlite Industries (up 0.63% to Rs 536.50), Tata Steel (down 0.25% to Rs 551.50), NALCO (up 1.40% to Rs 252), and Maharashtra Seamless (up 0.62% to Rs 577.55) had gained.

Thomas Cook India jumped 10% to Rs 565.65, after the company set 21 May 2007 as record date for a liberal 10-for-1 stock-split.

IT and BPO services provider MphasiS was down 1.10% to Rs 325.50, on unconfirmed rumours that it had bagged a $100-150 million deal in joint venture with EDS. Sources say that the deal was likely to be in the application developer space and a part of it may go to the Indian BPO. Sources also say that the deal is likely to last for four-six years. The deal is in the retail segment. It is MphasiS' second deal with EDS after the one with Vodafone.

Construction firm Pratibha Industries gained 5% to Rs 217.70, after it won a contract worth Rs 157 crore. The contract bagged in joint venture with Patel Engineering, pertains to a water tunnel project in Mumbai, and would be completed in 37 months.

Deccan Aviation was grounded by afternoon trade after rising 3.6% in early trade to Rs 118.50, following a report that one Lachmandas Ladhani, who owns 11% of Deccan Aviation, was looking at selling his stake. The stock lost 5% to Rs 108.60.

Jindal Photo surged 15.40% to Rs 112, on sustained buying due to strong Q4 March 2007 results. Jindal Photo reported a 326.3% growth in net profit in Q4 March 2007 at Rs 9.55 crore (Rs 2.24 crore). Net sales rose 5.7% to Rs 110.32 crore (Rs 104.40 crore).

For FY 2007 (year ended 31 March 2007), the net profit rose 41.7% to Rs 27.59 crore (Rs 19.47 crore). Net sales declined 5.4% to Rs 360.67 crore (Rs 381.25 crore).

GSFC tumbled 7% to Rs 167.50, on reporting a 50% fall in net profit for the March 2007 quarter at Rs 51.21 crore (Rs 102.25 crore). Net sales declined Rs 836.19 crore from Rs 942.12 crore. The results hit the market after trading hours on Friday (4 May 2007).

Mercator Lines declined 0.81% to Rs 42.65, on striking a high of Rs 45.10. The company said on Saturday it would invest about Rs 1000 crore to buy four dry bulk vessels through its Singapore unit.

The vessels, expected to be delivered by July, will take Mercator's consolidated fleet to 27 vessels with a capacity of about 2.45 million tonnes, Mercator Lines informed.

The Nikkei share average rose 1.58% on Monday to its highest close in more than three weeks, with technology shares such as Canon Inc., advancing following gains in their US peers and helped by a softer yen. The Nikkei was up 274.91 points, at 17,669.83, its highest close since 11 April 2007.

The Hang Seng was up 55.56 points (0.27%), to 20,896.64.

Foreign funds resumed buying on Thursday (3 May) after turning sellers in two trading sessions, on 27 April and 30 April. FIIs were net buyers to the tune of Rs 56.20 crore on 3 May 2007, as compared to their outflow of Rs 304.60 crore on 30 April 2007. The market was closed on 1 May 2007 and 2 May 2007, on account of public holidays. The net inflow from FIIs of Rs 56.20 crore on 3 May 2007, was a result of gross purchases worth Rs 2753.50 crore and gross sales to the tune of Rs 2697.30 crore.

But provisional data showed that foreign funds had turned sellers again on Friday (4 May), the day when the Sensex lost 144 points, led by a fall in index heavyweight Reliance Industries (RIL). FIIs were net sellers to the tune of Rs 131 crore on Friday. Domestic institutional investors were net buyers to the tune of Rs 299.10 crore on Friday.

The two key events to watch out for this week, are the outcome of elections in Uttar Pradesh (UP) and the outcome of US Federal Reserve's meeting on Wednesday (9 May).

The seventh and final phase of polls in Uttar Pradesh is scheduled for on Tuesday (May 8) and counting of votes is due on 11 May 2007, with results expected the same day. The UP vote is seen as a barometer of the national political trends.

US stocks climbed on Friday, lifted by talk of potential takeovers and after the influential non-farm payrolls data showed the world's biggest economy posted its slimmest gain in jobs in more than two years for April, helping to ease inflation concerns. The Dow rose 23.24 points (0.18%), to a record close of 13,264.62. The tech-laden Nasdaq Composite Index added 6.69 points (0.26%), to end at 2,572.15.

The main focus for the week will be an outcome of the US Federal Reserve meeting on Wednesday and, while no one expects a rate move, investors are keenly awaiting the Fed's latest assessment of the world's biggest economy.

Meanwhile, the government has proposed to remove loopholes in foreign direct investment (FDI) norms that allow foreigners to own stakes in Indian companies higher than the sectoral caps. The new guidelines, however, will not affect the existing foreign investments. The proposed change is to bring assorted forms of indirect foreign holding under the FDI cap, as well as to clearly define the contours of indirect holding.

At the moment, there are four distinct FDI slabs — ranging from 100% to a complete bar in some sectors. The telecom sector has a 74% sectoral cap, the aviation sector has a 49% sectoral cap, and the cap for the insurance sector stands at 40%.

India's largest real estate developer DLF said on Monday an initial public offering of 10.2% of the company should take place in the next three months as it had received regulatory approval for the sale. In 2006, the New Delhi-based DLF had dropped plans for what would have been India's biggest IPO due to a sharp market fall. At that time, the IPO was expected to raise up to $3.5 billion.

Market fails to remain above 14000

he market lost its initial grip and suffered heavy losses on late selling in information technology (IT), banking, auto and several other major counters. The Sensex opened firm at 14045 and rallied sharply by mid-morning to touch an intra-day high of 14067. However, profit booking saw the key indices come off their early highs, with IT shares getting hit by the rupee's rise against the US Dollar. The market finally gave in to profit booking and the Sensex slipped into red in the afternoon. The Sensex touched the intra-day low of 13861 towards the close and finally ended the session at 13879, down 55 points while the Nifty closed the session at 4111, down six points.

The breadth of the market was weak. Of the 2,647 stocks traded on the BSE, 1,396 stocks declined, 1,192 stocks advanced and 59 stocks ended unchanged. The sectoral indices were largely weak. The BSE IT index lost 1.42%, the BSE Teck index declined by 0.90% and the BSE Bankex shed 0.92%. However, the BSE Oil & Gas index rose 1.07% and the BSE FMCG index gained by 0.14%.

Several heavyweights slipped on late selling pressure. Among IT stocks, Wipro slipped and shed 2.24% at Rs555, Satyam Computers tumbled by 2.17% at Rs460 and Infosys dropped 1.61% at Rs2,039. Among the other major losers, Dr Reddy's Laboratories slumped by 2.20% at Rs704, Hindalco lost 2.16% at Rs145, Cipla slipped by 1.38% at Rs214, ICICI Bank dipped 1.28% at Rs844 and NTPC shed 1.23% at Rs156. Select counters, however, ended in the green. Ranbaxy gained 2.03% at Rs390, Reliance Industries advanced by 1.45% at Rs1,605 and Hero Honda added 1.02% at Rs705 while Bharti Airtel, ACC, TCS, HLL, Grasim and Bajaj Auto gained marginally.

IT stocks declined on sharp selling pressure. Tech Mahindra tumbled by 1.57% at Rs1,625, Mphasis dropped 1.09% at Rs325, Financial Technologies shed 0.47% at Rs1,951 and HCL Tech lost 0.37% at Rs337. Several banking stocks too witnessed profit taking. Allahabad Bank, Indian Overseas Bank, PNB and Oriental Bank were down 2-3% each.

Oil stocks, however, held ground and ended at higher levels. BPCL flared up by 4.60% at Rs350, IOC added 4.15% at Rs461, HPCL advanced by 3.87% at Rs289 and Reliance Natural Resources gained 0.74% at Rs27.

Over 2.52 crore IFCI shares changed hands on the BSE followed by Nagarjuna Fertilizer (1.32 crore shares), Reliance Natural Resources (1.52 crore shares), Tata Teleservices (1.06 crore shares) and Himachal Futuristic (95.49 lakh shares).

Value-wise ICRA registered a turnover of Rs397 crore on the BSE followed by India Bulls (Rs260 crore), Indiabulls Real Estate (Rs199 crore), Reliance Industries (Rs156 crore) and TCS (Rs152 crore).

Anand Rathi - Ultratech Cement

Sharekhan Riveting Metals dated May 07, 2007, Chana: Sharekhan Commodities Special dated May 07, 2007

Sharekhan Riveting Metals dated May 07, 2007

Chana: Sharekhan Commodities Special dated May 07, 2007

Citigroup - Intl Mkt Outlook: Growth outlook for China & India

Sharekhan Commodities Buzz dated May 07, 2007

Sharekhan Highnoon dated May 07, 2007

Edelweiss - Domestic Formulations-sector update

Kotak - HLL, Hindalco, Colgate, Ashok Leyland, HT Media, Great Eastern Shipping, Reliance Industries

HLL

Hindalco

Colgate

Ashok Leyland

HT Media

Great Eastern Shipping

Reliance Industries

Market may resume on a positive note

The market is likely open on a firm note on Friday's gains in the US indices and strong Asian markets in morning trades. Major Asian indices like Nikkei, Hang Seng, Kospi, Straits Times and Jakarta Composite are trading with gains of around 1% each. However, caution should be maintained on account of the prevalence of a intra-day volatility. Among the local indices, The Nifty may drift down to 4085 levels. On a break below 4085, the next short-term support is at 4040 and could test higher levels around 4130. The Sensex on the downside may slip to 13800 and may face resistance at 14100.

US indices registered another record high Friday, making this the longest bull run in 80 years, as investors cheered tame inflation numbers, talk of big mergers and a jobs report that appeared just right. While the Dow Jones gained by 23 points at 13265, the Nasdaq advanced by 7 points at 2572.

The Nymex light crude oil for June series slipped by $1.26 at $61.93 a barrel. In the commodity space, the Comex gold for June delivery rose by $5.30 to settle at $689.70 an ounce.

Intraday Stock Ideas

NIFTY (4117.35) sup 4104 res 4145

BUY SRF (163)
SL 159 T 171, 173

BUY CIPLA (217.35)
SL 213 T 225, 228

SELL IDEA (113.6)
@ 115 SL 118 T 108, 106

SELL HTMEDIA (184.25)
@ 186 SL 190 T 178, 176

SELL SATYAMCOMP (470.30)
@ 473 SL 478 T 460, 458

Anand Rathi - Weekly Wrap - May 7 2007

InvestsmartIndia - Morning Call

Market Grape Wine :

In House :

Nifty at a support of 4090 & 4061 & 4025 & 3900 levels with resistance at 4147 , 4180 & 4245 levels .

Buy : I-Flex intraday above 2412 target of 2460 s/l 2390

Buy : SRF intraday above 168 target of 176 s/l of 164

Sell : LT below 1704 target of 1682 s/l of 1715 .

Buy : Intraday JP Asso target of 649 s/l 628

Out House :

Markets at a support of 13848 & 13786 levels with resistance at 14014 & 14154 levels .

Buy : RIL & LT

Buy : SBIN & IcciciBank

Buy : IDBI & IFCI

Buy : LUPIN & GlenMark

Buy : DIVIS & HDFC

Buy : JSW & Sail

Buy : PRAJ & MphasisBFL

Dark Horse : Lupin , IBUlls , IbullReal , PRAJ , Glenmark , Divis & Mphasis

Market may move higher on firm Asian equities

The market may edge higher tracking firm Asian markets. Friday (4 May)’s data showing fall in inflation below 6% will help ease concerns of further rise in interest rate. The wholesale price index rose 5.77% in the 12 months to 21 April 2007, lower than previous week's increase of 6.09%.

Q4 results announced so far have been strong. The major Q4 result today is that of telecom software firm Tech Mahindra.

Foreign funds resumed buying on Thursday (3 May) after they had turned sellers in two trading sessions on 27 April and 30 April. FIIs were net buyers to the tune of Rs 56.20 crore on 3 May as compared to their outflow of Rs 304.60 crore on 30 April. The market was closed on 1 May and 2 May on account of public holidays. FII net inflow of Rs 56.20 crore on 3 May was a result of gross purchases Rs 2753.50 crore and gross sales Rs 2697.30 crore.

But provisional data showed that they had turned sellers again on Friday (4 May), the day when Sensex had lost 144 points led by fall in index heavyweight Reliance Industries (RIL). FIIs were net sellers to the tune of Rs 131 crore on Friday. Domestic institutional investors were net buyers to the tune of Rs 299.10 crore on Friday.

The two key events to watch out this week are outcome of elections in Uttar Pradesh (UP) and outcome of US Federal Reserve’s meeting on Wednesday 9 May.

The seventh and final phase of polls in Uttar Pradesh is scheduled for on Tuesday May 8. Counting of votes is due on May 11 and results are expected on the same day. The UP vote is seen as a barometer of national political trends.

Asia-Pacific stocks rose on Monday, with Australian and South Korean shares scaling fresh peaks, as investor sentiment got a lift from gains on Wall Street that pushed the blue-chip Dow to its fourth straight record close. Key benchmark indices in Australia, China, Hong Kong, Japan, Singapore, South Korea, and Taiwan were up by between 0.5% to 2.1%.

US stocks climbed on Friday, lifted by talk of potential takeovers and after the influential non-farm payrolls data showed the world's biggest economy posted its slimmest gain in jobs in more than two years for April, helping ease inflation concerns. Dow rose 23.24 points or 0.18% to a record close of 13,264.62. Tech laden Nasdaq Composite Index added 6.69 points or 0.26% to settle at 2,572.15

The main focus for the week will be the outcome of the US Federal Reserve meeting on Wednesday and, while no one expects a rate move, investors are keenly awaiting the central bank's latest assessment of the world's biggest economy.

Brent crude for June delivery fell 22 cents to $65.09 a barrel, as rising US crude stocks alleviated fears of a shortfall in the world's top energy consumer ahead of the peak summer driving season.

Emkay - Morning Notes, Taj GVK Hotels

Anand Rathi - Quick Pick - Enkei Castalloys

ENKEI CASTALLOYS

Company is in to manufacturing of - Aluminium alloys castings for engine parts like - Cylinder heads, Crank cases plus Alloy Wheels. The Enkei Corp of Japan [technology provider], which holds 38% stake in company is a global leader in Aluminium Alloy Wheels. Company supplies engine parts to - Bajaj Auto, Maruti and Hero Honda; while Ally wheels are supplied to Honda Siel cars for latest models like - Accord and Civic.

Company raised Rs 20 crs by private placement of 2.5 lakh shares each to two institutional investors - ICICI Fusion Fund & Minivet, Maritious. The shares were issued @ Rs 400 per share [10/- FV] [There after a split given in DEc 06, so FV of stock reduced to Rs 5 now]. So present price at Rs 140 is post 1:1 split and is at significant discount to adjusted placement price of Rs 200/-.

We expect company to do exceedingly well in 07-08 and report handsome profits - closer to 18 crs. This will give an EPS estimate for '08, more then Rs 15. Thus for a quality & fast growing MNC stock, the forward discounting for current year at below 9X is quite attractive.

BUY around current price with target of Rs 165 in short term and Rs 195 in medium term.

Anand Rathi - Quick Pick - Enkei Castalloys