Pharma stocks nudge higher

Key benchmark indices edged lower in choppy trade as index heavyweight Reliance Industries (RIL) reversed intraday gains in late trade. The S&P BSE Sensex reached 5-week closing low. The 50-unit CNX Nifty reached its lowest closing level in more than 5 weeks. The Sensex lost 64.70 points or 0.33%, off close to 200 points from the day's high and up about 250 points from the day's low. The market breadth, indicating the overall health of the market, turned negative from positive in late trade. Bank stocks declined. Some metal stocks fell. Pharma stocks rose on renewed buying. Indian stocks fell for the third straight day today, 4 June 2013. The Sensex has declined 669.62 points or 3.31% in the past three trading sessions from a recent high of 20,215.40 on 30 May 2013. The Sensex has gained 119.07 points or 0.61% in calendar 2013 so far (till 4 June 2013). From a 52-week high of 20,443.62 on 20 May 2013, the Sensex has fallen 897.84 points or 4.39%. From a 52-week low of 15,979.77 on 5 June 2012, the Sensex has surged 3,566.01 points or 22.31%. The S&P BSE Sensex lost 64.70 points or 0.33% to 19,545.78, its lowest closing level since 30 April 2013. The index lost 88.01 points at the day's low of 19,522.47 in late trade. The index rose 132.22 points at the day's high of 19,742.70 in morning trade. The CNX Nifty was down 19.85 points or 0.33% to 5,919.45, its lowest closing level since 29 April 2013. The index hit a low of 5,910.25 and high of 5,981.60 in intraday trade. The BSE Mid-Cap index rose 0.1%. The BSE Small-Cap index gained 0.27%. Both these indices outperformed the Sensex. The BSE HealthCare index (up 1.88%), BSE Capital Goods index (up 0.77%), BSE Power index (up 0.44%), BSE FMCG index (up 0.31%), BSE PSU index (down 0.09%), BSE Teck index (down 0.19%) and BSE Oil & Gas index (down 0.23%), outperformed the Sensex. The BSE Consumer Durables index (down 1.34%), BSE Bankex (down 0.95%), BSE Realty index (down 0.86%), BSE Auto index (down 0.46%), BSE IT index (down 0.45%) and BSE Metal index (down 0.4%), underperformed the Sensex. The total turnover on BSE amounted to Rs 1463 crore, lower than Rs 1782.22 crore on Monday, 3 June 2013. The market breadth, indicating the overall health of the market, turned negative from positive in late trade. On BSE, 1,215 shares fell and 1,119 shares rose. A total of 162 shares were unchanged. Among the 30-share Sensex pack, 16 stocks fell and the rest of them rose. Index heavyweight and cigarette major ITC rose 0.34% to Rs 337.45 in volatile trade on defensive buying. The stock hit high of Rs 339 and low of Rs 335.20. Index heavyweight Reliance Industries (RIL) dropped 0.95% to Rs 780.60, off the day's high of Rs 800.45. RIL and its partners BP and NIKO on 24 May 2013 announced a significant gas and condensate discovery in the KG D6 block off the eastern coast of India. RIL is the operator of KG D6 with 60% equity. BP has a 30% share and NIKO the remaining 10%. HDFC fell 1.61%. Bank stocks declined. State Bank of India fell 2.11% to Rs 2026. The stock came off the day's high of Rs 2084.45. The bank said after market hours on Monday, 3 June 2013, that it has been decided to reduce the interest rate on bulk deposits (Rs 1 crore and above) by 25 basis points (bps) for the tenors 7 days to less than 1 year. Accordingly, the interest rate for bulk deposits for the above tenors will be 7.25% per annum with effect from 7 June 2013. ICICI Bank fell 0.38%, with the stock reversing intraday gains. HDFC Bank dropped 0.81% to Rs 683.50, off the day's high of Rs 693.65. Some metal stocks fell. Hindalco Industries, Sterlite Industries and Jindal Steel & Power dropped by 0.39% to 1.98%. But, Tata Steel rose 0.57%. JSW Steel and JSW Ispat Steel edged higher after JSW Steel set 12 June 2013 as record date for merger of JSW Ispat Steel with the company. Shares of JSW Steel were up 2.28% and JSW Ispat Steel rose 3.27%. As per the swap ratio, the shareholders of JSW Ispat Steel will get one share of JSW Steel for every 72 shares held in JSW Ispat Steel. Jaypee Infratech tumbled 5.23% to Rs 29, with the stock extending recent steep losses to hit a record low today, 4 June 2013. The stock hit record low of Rs 28.65 in intraday trade today, 4 June 2013. The company concluded its offer for sale (OFS) on 29 May 2013. The OFS of Jaypee Infratech was subscribed 1.43 times at an indicative price of Rs 35.13 per share. After the share sale, Jaiprakash Associates' total stake in Jaypee Infratech reduced to 71.64% from 83.16% earlier. Pharma stocks rose on renewed buying. Pharmaceutical major Sun Pharmaceutical Industries rose 0.13% to Rs 1018.80, with the stock reversing intraday losses. The company announced after market hours today, 4 June 2013, that it has received final approval from the United States Food & Drug Administration (USFDA) for its Abbreviated New Drug Application (ANDA) for generic version of an injection which is indicated for replacement therapy in the male in conditions associated with symptoms of deficiency or absence of endogenous testosterone. It is a generic version of Pfizer's Depo-Testosterone Injection. As per April-2013 IMS MAT data, the product had annual revenue of approximately $130 million in the US. Cipla rose 1.83% to Rs 375.25 on bargain hunting after recent steep slide. The stock had lost 13.22% to settle at Rs 368.50 on Monday, 3 June 2013, from a recent high of Rs 424.65 on 17 May 2013. Dr Reddy's Laboratories rose 1.88% to Rs 2152.85, with the stock gaining for the second straight day. The stock hit record high of Rs 2,168.50 in intraday trade today, 4 June 2013. The company said during market hours on Monday, 3 June 2013, that FUJIFILM Corporation and the company have decided to terminate the memorandum of understanding (MoU) to enter into a exclusive partnership in the generic drugs business for the Japanese market and to establish joint venture in Japan. Based on MoU signed on 28 July 2011, the two companies had conducted detailed studies on the establishment of a joint venture for developing and manufacturing generic drugs in Japan. However, as Fujifilm realigns its long term growth strategy in pharmaceutical business, both companies have decided to terminate the MoU. The two companies will continue to explore partnerships/alliance in other pharmaceutical businesses such as active pharmaceutical ingredients (API) development and manufacturing, contract research and development and manufacturing, and the development and marketing of super-generics. Cadila Healthcare galloped 5.48% to Rs 814.45 ahead of a press conference on Wednesday, 5 June 2013, in Mumbai. The stock was third biggest gainer in 'A' group. Shares of power equipment maker Bhel shed 0.81%. Castrol India rose 0.65% to Rs 362.40, off a record high of Rs 371.45 hit in intraday trade today, 4 June 2013. Suzlon Energy rose 1.61% after the company's subsidiary, REpower Systems, concluded two contracts with ABO Wind for supplying 13 wind turbines for two wind farms in Burgundy, France. Suzlon Energy said that the wind farms will generate a total output of more than 26 megawatts (MW). The first machines will be delivered for fall 2013 and the commissioning is planned for winter 2013/14. REpower will also provide the full maintenance of the wind farms for 15 years, Suzlon said. Tata Communications rose 0.93% after the company announced the addition of a state-of-the-art Telepresence suite in Shanghai in partnership with China Mobile and JW Marriott Hotel Shanghai. Through a partnership with China Mobile, the JW Marriott Hotel Shanghai Telepresence facility will be connected to Tata Communications' Global Meeting Exchange Telepresence inter-exchange network -- one of the broadest and widest-reaching Telepresence networks available today. This network has connectivity to all Tata Communications' private Telepresence rooms as well as the customers of service providers with whom it has interexchange connectivity agreements in place, and vice versa. As the leading mobile services provider in Mainland China, the China Mobile Group boasts the world's largest mobile network and the world's largest mobile customer base. IT stocks were mostly lower on weak economic data in the US, the biggest outsourcing market for the Indian IT firms TCS dropped 0.39%. HCL Technologies dropped 0.7%. Infosys fell 0.75% to Rs 2495.05 on profit booking after Monday's 4.42% rally. The stock came off the day's low of Rs 2464. The stock had surged in volatile trade on Monday, 3 June 2013, after the company on Saturday, 1 June 2013, announced that the board of directors approved have appointed Mr. N R Narayana Murthy as Executive Chairman of the board and Additional Director for a five year period with effect from 1 June 2013. Wipro rose 1.6% after the company said after market hours on Monday, 3 June 2013, that the company has made an investment in Axeda Corporation, a leading provider of Cloud-based Service and Software for Managing Connected Products and delivering Machine-to-Machine (MM) Applications. With this investment, Wipro and Axeda will accelerate services and end-to-end solutions designed to help organizations connect with any asset, leverage real-time machine data to enhance business processes, and develop new innovative enterprise applications, Wipro said. As a Platinum Partner, Wipro will receive top-priority commitment from Axeda and preferential benefits such as dedicated access to Axeda trained technical resources and premium support and services to drive Machine-to-Machine (M2M) initiatives, Wipro said. Wipro also said after market hours on Monday, 3 June 2013, that following an approval received from Sebi, Azim Premji Trust, a member of the promoter group, has transferred 6.1 crore shares of the company to Pioneer Independent Trust (Irrevocable Independent Trust) for the purpose of meeting the minimum public shareholding requirement of 25%. Shares of footwear retailer Bata India jumped 6.61% after a domestic brokerage initiated coverage on the stock with a buy rating citing strong earnings and growth visibility. The brokerage said that Bata India's focus is on aggressive growth by expanding presence in Tier II, III cities and rural India. The brokerage expects the company's margins to increase on the back of outsourcing of certain manufacturing operations and control over employee costs. Shares of two other footwear makers also rose. Liberty Shoes (up 11.96%), Relaxo Footwear (up 0.85%), gained. Shares of some companies which may apply for banking licenses rose after the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Monday, 3 June 2013, said the validity of in-principle approval for new banks has been extended to 18 months from one year. IDFC, L&T Finance Holdings, LIC Housing Finance and Reliance Capital rose 0.44% to 1.79%. But, M&M Financial Services fell 1.81%. The aspirants will have to create a holding company which will house the bank and all their other financial-services businesses, the RBI said. They will have to separately approach regulators such as the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority and the Securities and Exchange Board of India to bring their nonbank financial services entities under the holding company, it said. The last date to apply for bank licenses is 1 July 2013. Two wheeler makers rose. Hero MotoCorp (HMCL) rose 0.04% to Rs 1,668.20 after the world's largest two-wheeler manufacturer after market hours on Monday, 3 June 2013, reported record monthly sales in May 2013. The stock came off the day's high of Rs 1,713.20. The company's two-wheeler sales rose 0.22% to a record 5.57 lakh units in May 2013 over May 2012. The company also said its retail sales in May 2013 were the highest ever retail sales for any non-festival period. With demand for Hero MotoCorp products among customers at an unprecedented high, the company retailed over 11 lakh two-wheelers for the combined months of April and May -- its highest-ever retail sales for any non-festival period. HMCL made its debut in Central America in May 2013 by launching brand ‘Hero' and its range of two-wheelers in Guatemala, El Salvador and Honduras. Hero MotoCorp has appointed the reputed Indy Motos Group of Guatemala as the authorised distributor of its range of two-wheelers in these countries. Bajaj Auto gained 0.38%. The company said during market hours on Monday, 3 June 2013, that total sales fell 4% to 3.39 lakh units in May 2013 over May 2012. Motorcycle sales fell 5% to 3.04 lakh units in May 2013 over May 2012. Domestic motorcycle sales rose 3% to 2.12 lakh units in May 2013 over May 2012, owing to the launch of new Discover models. Sales of Commercial vehicles rose 14% to 34,568 units in May 2013 over May 2012. Total exports declined 14% to 1.11 lakh units in May 2013 over May 2012. Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) rose 1.13%, with the stock gaining for the second straight day. The company during market hours on Monday, 3 June 2013, announced that its tractor sales rose 24% to 23,626 units in May 2013 over May 2012. The company's domestic tractor sales jumped 25% to 22,471 units in May 2013 over May 2012. Exports rose 16% to 1,155 units in May 2013 over May 2012. The company on Saturday, 1 June 2013, said its total sales declined 1% at 43,460 units in May 2013 over May 2012. Auto sales in the domestic market rose 5% to 42,104 units in May 2013 over May 2012. The passenger vehicles segment which includes the UVs and Verito registered a growth of 5% at 22,244 units in May 2013 over May 2012. The four-wheeler commercial segment which includes the passenger and load vehicles registered a 12% growth at 14,848 units while the three-wheeler segment witnessed a 7% decline in sales at 4,028 units in May 2013 over May 2012. Exports declined sharply by 67% at 1,356 units in May 2013 over Maruti Suzuki India fell 1.33% to Rs 1,548.80, with the stock extending Monday's 2.27% losses triggered by the company reporting fall in sales in May 2013. The stock was volatile. The scrip hit high of Rs 1,587.40 and low of Rs 1,541. The company said during market hours today, 4 June 2013, that its production fell 2.54% to 1.01 lakh units in May 2013 over May 2012. The company on Saturday, 1 June 2013, reported 14.4% fall in total sales to 84,677 units in May 2013 over May 2012. The company's domestic sales declined 13% to 77,821 units in May 2013 over May 2012. Exports fell 27.1% to 6,856 units in May 2013 over May 2012. Tata Motors declined 2.34%. Tata Motors' total sales (including exports) of Tata commercial and passenger vehicles declined 23.37% to 49,304 vehicles in May 2013 over May 2012. The company's domestic sales of Tata commercial and passenger vehicles declined 24.44% to 45,430 units in May 2013 over May 2012. Exports declined 8.17% to 3,874 units in May 2013 over May 2012. The company announced the monthly sales data on 1 June 2013. European market edged higher as the release of disappointing ISM manufacturing figures in the US reined back expectations that the Federal Reserve will exit its quantitative easing program any time soon. Key benchmark indices in UK, France and Germany were up by 0.18% to 0.53%. The number of people filing for jobless benefits in Spain dropped 2% in May to 4.89 million, a second-straight monthly fall, according to government statistics released on Tuesday. It was also the lowest level for jobless claims since December. The level fell by 92,265 persons, which was the biggest drop for the month of May on record. Spain's unemployment rate stood at 27.2% in the first quarter and in April rose beyond 6 million for the first time ever. Spain had the second-highest unemployment rate in the 27-nation European Union in April. Asian stocks edged higher on Tuesday, 4 June 2013. Key benchmark indices in Hong Kong, Indonesia, Japan and Singapore rose by 0.01% to 2.05%. Key benchmark indices in China and Taiwan shed by 0.12% to 1.17%. South Korea's Kospi was flat. A report Monday, 3 June 2013, from HSBC showed activity in China's manufacturing sector contracted in May 2013. Trading in US index futures indicated that the Dow could fall 14 points at the opening bell on Tuesday, 4 June 2013. US stocks rallied on Monday as investors gauged the impact of disappointing factory data on potential quantitative-easing moves by the Federal Reserve. The Institute for Supply Management said Monday its business-conditions index last month fell to 49% in its first contraction since November.