Markets Forward | Look Ahead To Tomorrow's Trade: What Are Key Events | Stock Market News

Added: 2026-05-22

[00:00:02]Markets failed to sustain opening gains and end largely flat in a volatile session. Nifty slips below 23,700.

[00:00:09]Nifty [music] Bank falls over 1% from intraday highs.

[00:00:15]Grasim climbs after beating profitability estimates in its fiber and chemicals business. Losses also narrowed in new verticals [music] like paints. A focus on stabilizing businesses versus new forays aids sentiment.

[00:00:27]ITC results come in line with street expectations in the fourth quarter. FMCG volume grows 14% versus estimates of 12 to 13%.

[00:00:47]Hello and welcome. You're watching us here on Markets Forward. Good evening.

[00:00:50]I'm Mangalam Maloo. With me, Vivek Iyer.

[00:00:52]And this is the show where we give you all that transpired in the market in today's trading session [music] while preparing you for everything that comes your way tomorrow as well. We've got you covered for the next 20 minutes. Today was another day where at the higher level, Vivek, we saw some supply. So, for the last two three trading sessions, at lower levels we're seeing demand and at higher levels we are seeing the supply. So, all in all, it is a volatile choppy trading session that we've had today. But over the last few trading sessions itself, the Nifty has been where? Between 23,300 to 23,800 with now being absolutely flat, marginally in the red for close today. Good afternoon, Mangalam. You're absolutely right.

[00:01:30]Especially when you're looking at trade yesterday, you know, we came in with negative news and came in with negative cues yesterday and we ended near the day's highest point. Today, most of the global cues that we had were quite positive and we gave up significantly intraday to end near the day's lowest point. A very choppy trading session, like you mentioned. But we've got you covered for the next 20 minutes with all the big news, key developments on Dalal Street, top corporate voices, as well as the key events to track [music] going forward. Here's the lineup of what we have in store for you today. We'll start with the top movers and shakers of the day with Sudarshan. It was an earnings-heavy day. We will decode the numbers of Grasim, Jubilant FoodWorks, Samunnati Capital, and others. And last [music] but not the least, we'll delve into the key market events to watch out for in tomorrow's trading session. And now on to our first segment of the day.

[00:02:15]Sudarshan is standing by the big wall with all the top movers and shakers of the day.

[00:02:20]So, while most of the heavyweights of Nifty stocks closed sharply lower or in the red, but there were gainers, too.

[00:02:26]So, on top of the list was Grasim Industries. Positive commentary, positive earnings from Q4 of FY26 that led to a sharp gain in the stock. Closed with a gain of almost 6%. Crude Crude has fallen almost 5% overnight. That's the reason Indigo was up more than 3%.

[00:02:40]Apollo Hospitals, positive earnings and positive commentary at at the end of the day was up 3%. Bajaj Auto continues to see buying ahead of the buyback announce ahead of the buyback starting date. And today also it's up almost 2%. Bharat Electronics, it was a positive management commentary and the guidance given for both margin and the revenue growth was positive and that's the reason the stock was up almost 2%.

[00:03:02]Some of the stocks that have reacted to earnings majorly, Samunnati Capital. Q4 is seen as the turnaround quarter and that's the reason this stock has closed with a gain of almost 9%. IRB Infra, healthy volume growth expectations for FY27. Stock up 8%. Jubilant Food, earnings were largely in line but there on the concerns related to margin. The stock has fallen almost 8%. Century Enka, earnings came in last hour and the stock closed at the upper circuit up almost 20%. Some of the mid-cap losers, PI Industries. It was a weak set of earnings for Q4. Even commentary that company has given for FY27 was largely weak. All the brokerages have cut estimates. The stock was down 6%. Bosch Industries, earnings were largely in line. Commentary for FY27 of flat volume growth that led to a sharp downtick down 4%. MCX, after seeing buying for continuously and today the stock has seen selling down more than 3%. Mankind Pharma commentary was weak for FY27 and that's the reason this stock too has fallen almost 3%.

[00:03:58]Some of the stock that have seen huge gains amongst mid-cap names Amber Enterprises, all the EMS names were sharply higher today. Amber Enterprises, Kaynes Technology, all both these names closed with a gain of almost 6 to 7% Angel One continues to see buying amidst all the capital market names. Today also this stock closed with a gain of almost 5% and Samvardhana Motherson was a positive management commentary for FY27 and closed sharply higher up almost 4%.

[00:04:21]Thank you so much for joining us and giving us a neat wrap of all the top movers and shakers in today's trading session. But moving on, one particular stock that stood out was Grasim. This was after the company reported a strong operating performance in its core fiber and chemicals business, which helped offset pressure from the newer ventures.

[00:04:38]Losses also narrowed in high-growth verticals like paints. Nigel Decodes the numbers for us.

[00:04:45]Well, there are a few factors that have played out for Grasim and that's why the street quite likes their numbers. And then for Grasim, bulk of their SATP and bulk bulk of their operating profit as well comes in from UltraTech Cement. So for Grasim, when they report their numbers, you look at the standalone business, namely the fibers business as well as the chemicals business. And if you put a number to it, well, the standalone EBITDA number that we were working with and what they delivered, the delivered number is much better than what we were working with and that's because both the segments actually did better. To give you a few numbers, the fiber business, well, it gave a an EBITDA of around 590 crores. Kotak was at around 550 crores. The chemicals business continues to remain under pressure, but still the number that was delivered was better than what you know, Kotak was anticipating. So that was good news. The newer business, if you look at the paints business, the you know, the B2B e-commerce business as well, you put it together, those losses are gradually coming down and in the past quarter, the EBITDA loss was close to around 300 crores. The management has said that the B2B e-commerce business will actually turn profitable by the end of this fiscal, which is a positive in itself.

[00:05:46]The management also, you know focused on the capital allocation. Remember they got close to 3,900 crores via dividend from UltraTech Cement and they'll be paying out they'll be investing in a group company which is AB Capital to the tune of around 2,880 crores. They've gone on to clarify that they're looking at investing in the businesses that they have currently under their purview and they're not going for anything fancy or not looking to divert to any new business. So that was encouraging as well. Moving to brokerages, well you have Nuvama, they have upgraded the stock to buy from hold. They've also up the target price. They're saying the performance the operating performance is improving and also the market share gains in paints business is what they like. Jefferies has revised the target price higher as well. They're saying that the holding company discount which is currently around 38% that could come down. And finally, Motilal Oswal, they continue their buy rating on the stock target price of around 3,440.

[00:06:35]Put everything together, whether operational performance, the losses in the new businesses are coming down and they're guiding that the B2B e-commerce business could turn into the black. The street likes all of that. Explains why the stock is doing well. Back to you.

[00:06:48]Well, thank you so much uh Nigel for joining us and breaking out all the details as to why Grasim did very well in the session today. To take this discussion forward, we are now joined by Sudip Bandyopadhyay, chairman from Intuit Capital and Ruchit Jain from Motilal Oswal Financial Services. Uh thank you so much gentlemen for joining us and good afternoon to you. Well, Ruchit, let me just come across to you first. Are you a little surprised given the kind of positive opening that we've seen, the kind of ending that Nifty saw, you know ending near the day's lowest point in the negative territory. Uh we've been in a range. What do you think can be the triggers for a breakout or a breakdown?

[00:07:22]Yeah, a very good afternoon.

[00:07:24]Uh well, frankly, if we see last few trading sessions, that's what has been been happening with the markets. Either they open with a gap down and recover around from the lows or they open on a positive note then again end on a flat note. Yesterday we saw 150 points gap down opening, markets ended on a flat note. Today we saw 150 points gap up opening and ending on a flat note. So ideally this clearly indicates that we are still stuck within the broad range of 23,300 on the lower side and 23,900 on the higher side. And until we see any breakout on the either side of the range, it's likely to consolidate within the range itself. So I think you know, this is more of a stock specific market which is going on.

[00:08:02]But on the index front, it's just a time waste corrective phase. So till 23,300 is intact, the broader trend is not negative. But for the momentum to pick up, we need to surpass the 23,900 mark.

[00:08:13]All right. We do need to surpass the 23,900 mark. Ruchi, thanks a lot for that. Sudeep, what do you make of Grasim? You know, the kind of up move that the stock showed today, everyone is now looking at it as the holding company of all the things that the Birla group will enter. Not just the holding company that you know, it owns cement at large, but every new venture that the Birlas do will be routed via Grasim is the thesis that the street is playing with. Would you subscribe to that and what would your sum of the parts be?

[00:08:43]Well, Mangalam, I think it was a pleasant surprise. I think the numbers were much better than what we were anticipating. We already know UltraTech and UltraTech dividend which Grasim did get.

[00:08:54]But the standalone businesses in the standalone company, I think both of them both the segments performed exceedingly well and you know, that's why they were much better than what the market and the street and the brokerages did.

[00:09:10]What was also pleasant surprise was the new businesses.

[00:09:15]You know, in spite of reducing the losses and bringing them at EBITDA loss level of around 300, the paint business also gained market share of about 90 basis point, which was also quite commendable because they did spend quite a bit for this market expansion. So I think overall a definite beat. The management commentary around capital employment and the that they they will be sticking to the existing businesses and not getting into further diversification also was very reassuring and I think all this good news was translated into the price and that's why we saw a positive price reaction today in the market. But having said all that I think we have been liking Grasim for quite some time and we continue to maintain our positive stance on Grasim on the basis of UltraTech's performance.

[00:10:01]UltraTech has been our favorite in the cement pack as well as uh the new businesses and the existing Take that point. We'll just try and Grasim business.

[00:10:14]Take that point, Sudip. Thanks a lot for that. We'll just try and patch that conversation communication line with him. But in in the meanwhile, you know, towards the dying hours of dying minutes of trade rather, we had ITC that reported its results and they were largely in line with the FMCG business actually standing out and the reported revenue was obviously divergent with the poll due to the excise duty impact. So, the reported revenue of the company was close to 16,050 crores. This compared to the CNBC-TV18 poll of 18,275 crores.

[00:10:44]That divergence largely can be explained by the 5,000 crore rupee excise duty impact. So, if you you know, take that off then you know, the revenue probably not the most mature to compare with the poll. The important numbers are below that, the net profit. The street was working with a number of 5,000 crores.

[00:11:01]The company's reported about you know, uh uh 5,100 odd crores itself. Then the EBITDA, the street was working with a number of 6,200 crores, 6,400 crores is what the company's reported on the EBITDA front as well. Largely in line.

[00:11:17]Now, look at the segments. The cigarette business reported revenue growth was 31% but remember a large part of that is price led as well. So, the cigarette volume growth, implied volume growth would be mid single digits, pretty much in line with street expectations of low single digits. A little bit of an out-performance out there could be attributed to pre-buying ahead of the excise duty hike. The FMCG revenue growth, not the volume growth, the revenue growth has come in closer to 15%. Here the expectations were 10 to 11% with margin expansions and the margins in the FMCG business have expanded as well. What's led to some disappointment on the revenue has been actually the agri business which has seen a 16% decline, but that is understandable given the fact that same time last year you know, we did have some sort of you know, leeway when it came to export opportunities for trading opportunities for their agri business.

[00:12:07]Now that's come down by about 16%. All in all, it was an in-line set and the stock move reflected that as well. Let's bring this back to our experts. Ruchit, you know, fundamentally there's a lot happening for ITC. The FMCG business is becoming the mainstay, but technically the stock has done literally nothing after having fallen about 20 25% in the last few days in the in fact, the last few months.

[00:12:32]I think if you see post the demerger of ITC hotels, the stock made a high of around 414 February 2025. So it's been almost 1 and 1/2 years the stock witnessed a sharp price wise corrective phase with lower top lower bottom structure. But of late, you know, the stock has formed a good support base around 290, but no signs of any uptrend, but I think the trend has changed from down to sideways. So I think the price wise corrective phase is done for the stock. We do not see much downside from here on. But there are definitely chances of some time wise correction to continue. So some consolidation in a broad range could happen before we see next directional trend in the stock.

[00:13:09]Well, thank you so much Ruchit as well as Sudeep for joining us giving us your view on the markets, our Nifty levels, as well as your individual trading calls and views on various stocks like we asked you. Thank you once again gentlemen for joining us. Well, Sam on Capital's balance sheet clean up helped it close FY26 with zero NPAs, though the transition led to losses exceeding 8,000 crore rupees. MD and CEO Gagan Banga told CNBC TV18, "The legacy book has now been fully resolved and expects the cost of capital to decline going forward."

[00:13:38]Ananya joins in with all the key details.

[00:13:43]Well, very interesting quarter for Saman Capital. We can see it was a more of a reset quarter that could redefine the franchise. Now, when we look at the numbers, they reported a loss of around 8,000 crore after aggressively cleaning up their legacy book through ARC sales, write-offs, and provisions. Now, NII also remained weak. We can see the finance cost of nearly 16,079 crore exceeding interest income of around 1,000 crore. But, the management mentioned that this will be the end of the cleanup era. Now, backed by $1 billion IHC's investment, Saman Capital now claims that their 53,000 crore AUM carries effectively no GNPAs or NNPAs, and all the three rating agencies have upgraded their rating to AA+ within a 50 days. Now, the big story here, the main catch here is the cost of fund. The management expects 150 to 270 bips reduction over time that could gradually improve the profitability going forward.

[00:14:42]Now, when we look at the guidance, they remain very aggressive. Targets of 2 lakh crore AUM, 4.4% ROA, and high teen ROEs by FY '13.

[00:14:51]And while the few quarters will be very critical for proving an ROA recovery and sustained profitability, the management message is clear that the worst is now behind them. And we can see if the execution remains disciplined, Saman Capital could emerge as one of the more interesting long-term turnaround stories in the NBFC space.

[00:15:14]firmly and finally able to say that the legacy book is closed. And that is the first message I would like to give our youth that the legacy book is home finally formally firmly closed.

[00:15:29]All right, we take that point. That's about you know, the big earning that came today from Saman Capital, but we had a lot of other companies that reported earnings and you know, the stock prices moved around that as well. There was Protean eGov, there was Honeywell Automation, a bunch of them. Divyani joins in with a list of that.

[00:15:48]Well, let me start with Protean eGov Technologies. Now, this stock hit upper circuit in trade today and that's on the back of a strong set of results that the company came out with in quarter four of FY26. Now, there was quarter on quarter as well as year on year strong growth that was seen this time around with the tax service segment reporting a robust 17 and a half percent year on year revenue growth. Now, growth in the tax service was led by 232 basis points gain in market share and a sharp increase in PAN card issuances in quarter four.

[00:16:16]Revenue as a result came in at 307.5 crores. EBITDA came in at 38.5 crores with margins at around 12.5% this time around and PAT came in at 30 crores this time around up 49% since last year.

[00:16:30]And next up is Honeywell Auto Automation. Now, that stock was also up sharply and that was after JM Financial upgraded the stock to a buy with a target price set at 44,000 rupees. Now, they say that while the revenue was moderately below their estimate, margins have turned the corner based on quarter quarter four of FY26 results. Now, that stock was also up in trade today.

[00:16:51]Next up is Bwork. Now, that stock also reacted positively with a positive set of management commentary coming in.

[00:16:59]Management says that the levers have turned top line growth into margin expansion and cash revenue generation was firmly in place. Now, revenue came in at 705 crores up 27% on a year on year perspective while EBITDA came in at 459 crores up 28% while margins came in at 65% and net profit as a result was up 78% to 65 crores this time around. Last up is Bosch. Now, earnings were largely in line with revenue driven by growth in power solutions by roughly around 27% and two-wheeler power sports seeing a growth of roughly around 63% on a year-on-year perspective. Revenue came in at 13% up at around 5,566 crores with EBITDA coming in at 782 crores up 21% on a year-on-year perspective with margins coming in at 14% this time around and as a result profit was up 2% to 569 crores on a year-on-year perspective.

[00:17:57]Thank you so much Devyani for joining us, giving us a comprehensive view of all the top or the key companies that came out with results today and what drove these stocks higher or lower in the session today. With that, it's time for a short break. We'll get you the top corporate voices along with the key market events to watch out for on the other side.

[00:18:27]Good evening. You're watching us here on Markets Forward. It was a volatile day.

[00:18:30]The Nifty ended flat, but a lot of stocks moving around, a lot of corporate voices that joined us on the channel as well. Let's start with Zydus Life. The MD joined us saying that the US business remains resilient. The company plans to launch 25 to 13 new drugs in the region.

[00:18:41]They added that a robust innovation pipeline will help >> [music] >> and also organic growth will be on the focus of organic growth will be on adding new capabilities.

[00:18:53]The management of Metro Brands told CNBC TV18 that demand trends remain strong despite short-term inflationary pressures. The company continues to maintain its long-term revenue growth guidance of mid-teens along with EBITDA margins the 29 to 31% range.

[00:19:08]Epac Durable told CNBC TV18 that last two months have shown some positive signs with inventory levels in the room AC segment now normalizing the AC segment degrew 33% in FY 26 as it was a challenging year for the industry.

[00:19:21]They're targeting to double that revenue and margins over the next two to three years. Also exceed the industry growth of 12 to 15% in this financial year.

[00:19:31]And before we wrap this edition of Markets Forward, we bring you the key market events to watch out for tomorrow's trading session. Rhea standing by with the key events.

[00:19:39]Well, starting off with the global events, uh first or in the UK we have the retail sales data coming out. In the US, Kevin Warsh will be sworn in as the Fed chair tomorrow. Uh Eurozone finance ministers and central bank governors will also be holding a meeting. And apart from this, there's also the EU trade ministers meeting to be held in Brussels. Back home in India, the earning season continues. We have Sun Pharma, Hindalco, Torrent Pharma, Info Edge, Colgate, Eicher Motors, Fortis Healthcare as well as Indigo Paints in this list. Uh RBI The RBI will also be holding a board meeting tomorrow, so that will be key to watch. And uh apart from this, uh the parliamentary standing uh committee meeting will also be something that will be closely tracked.

[00:20:18]All right, Rhea, thanks a lot for that.

[00:20:19]With that, we're out of time on this edition of Markets Forward. From Vivek me, [music] thank you for watching. Stay tuned to CNBC-TV18. More news and updates continue.