Share markets in India are presently trading on a strong note.
The BSE Sensex is trading up by 273 points, up 0.7%, at 40,700 levels.
Meanwhile, the NSE Nifty is trading up by 65 points.
Bharti Airtel and HCL Technologies are among the top gainers today. Britannia and ONGC are among the top losers today.
Both, the BSE Mid Cap index and BSE Small Cap index are trading up by 0.3%
On the sectoral front, stocks from the telecom sector are witnessing most of the buying interest.
On the other hand, stocks from the oil & gas sector and metal sector are witnessing most of the selling pressure.
US stock futures are trading higher today, indicating a positive opening for Wall Street indices.
Nasdaq Futures are trading up by 66 points (up 0.6%), while Dow Futures are trading up 77 points (up 0.3%).
The rupee is trading at 73.4 against the US$.
Gold prices are trading down by 0.2% at Rs 50,578 per 10 grams.
Speaking of the precious yellow metal, how lucrative has gold been as a long-term investment in India?
The chart below shows the annual returns on gold over the last 15 years...
As you can see, barring just two years - 2013 and 2015, gold has delivered positive returns in 13 of the last 15 years.
Moving on to stock-specific news...
Among the buzzing stocks, today is ACC Limited.
Cement maker ACC Ltd reported a net profit of Rs 3.6 billion for the quarter ended September, a 20.3% rise, as against Rs 3 billion in the corresponding quarter of the previous financial year.
The company's consolidated profit before tax (PBT) grew by nearly 22% year-on-year (YoY) to Rs 5.4 billion in September 2020 as against Rs 4.4 billion in September 2019 while its revenue during the quarter increased marginally by Rs 200 million YoY.
Its earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) for the quarter also rose 20.5% to Rs 6.7 billion from Rs 5.6 billion in the corresponding quarter last year, while its EBITDA margin expanded by 320 bps to 19% from 15.8% YoY.
The company said efficiency and cost-reduction drove EBITDA margin expansion during the quarter and focus on premium products that enabled net sales growth of 4% in cement over the previous year.
ACC Limited, a member of the LafargeHolcim Group, is one of India's leading producers of cement and ready-mixed concrete and follows a January-December financial year.
The company expects the government's thrust on infrastructure development, increased spending through measures aimed at reviving the rural economy and a sharper focus on the affordable housing segment to drive a strong resurgence of cement demand and bring growth opportunities for the cement sector going forward.
At the time of writing, ACC Limited share price was trading up by 1.2% on the BSE.
Moving on to news from the insurance sector...
HDFC Life Q2FY21 Results: Profit Rises, Retail Business Aids Gross Premium
HDFC Life Insurance Co. Ltd reported a 6% YoY increase in net profit to Rs 3.3 billion for the quarter ended September.
The company's gross premium rose 35% to Rs 101.8 billion in the reported quarter over the year-ago period, aided by increased traction in the retail business, backed by a marginal uplift in household income and spends.
Focus on the protection segment resulted in 38% YoY growth in the individual (retail) segment. Protection share based on individual annualized premium equivalent improved to 9% in the first half of FY21 from 6% a year ago. Its operating expense ratio stood at 11.1% for first half of FY21 compared to 14% a year ago.
The company also continued to maintain a healthy persistency ratio - a measure of how long a customer continues with their policy - at 91% in the quarter ended September compared to 89% a year ago. This was the highest in at least six quarters.
The company believes that due to the pandemic, insurance as a category has emerged stronger as a vehicle to protect one's family and realize their long-term financial goals. Customers are more active in decision-making, resulting in traction in the individual business.
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