Indian share markets witnessed volatile trading activity throughout the day today and ended higher.

Benchmark indices witnessed volatile trading activity and swung between gains and losses amid mixed investor sentiment across global markets.

At the closing bell, the BSE Sensex stood higher by 98 points (up 0.2%).

Meanwhile, the NSE Nifty closed higher by 36 points (up 0.2%).

State Bank of India and Shree Cements were among the top gainers today.

HDFC and IOC, on the other hand, were among the top losers today.

The SGX Nifty was trading at 15,423, up by 79 points, at the time of writing.

The BSE Mid Cap index and the BSE Small Cap index ended up by 0.6% and 0.5%, respectively.

Sectoral indices ended on a positive note with stocks in the banking sector, IT sector, and metal sector witnessing most of the buying interest.

Realty and telecom stocks, on the other hand, witnessed selling pressure.

Shares of V Guard Industries and TTK Prestige hit their respective 52-week highs today.

Asian stock markets ended on a mixed note today as investors weighed the prospects for recovery in major economies.

The Hang Seng ended down by 0.2%, while the Shanghai Composite ended up by 0.4%.

The Nikkei ended down by 0.3% in today's session.

US stock futures are trading on a flat note today with the Dow Futures trading down by 31 points.

The rupee is trading at 72.59 against the US$.

Gold prices for the latest contract on MCX are trading down by 0.3% at Rs 48,630 per 10 grams.

In news from the paints sector, Berger Paints was among the top buzzing stocks today.

Shares of Berger Paints dipped over 4% in intra-day trade today even as the company reported that its consolidated net profit more than doubled in the fourth quarter.

The country's second-largest paint maker Berger Paints India on Wednesday reported its consolidated net profit for the quarter ended March increased by 102% to Rs 2.1 billion from Rs 1 billion in the previous March quarter.

For the entire fiscal year ended March 2021, net profit was Rs 7.2 billion as against Rs 6.6 billion in FY20, up 9.7%.

On a standalone basis, net profit for the quarter ended 31 March 2021, was Rs 1.8 billion, as against Rs 1.9 billion recorded in the corresponding quarter of the previous financial year.

Revenue from operations for the quarter ended March 2021 was Rs 20.3 billion against Rs 13.5 billion in the corresponding quarter of the last financial year.

This is an increase of 49.5% over the corresponding period of the last financial year.

For the full financial year 2021, the company's revenue from operations stood at Rs 68.2 billion, up 7.1% against Rs 63.7 billion in the last year.

Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) for the quarter ended 31 March 2021 was Rs 3.4 billion against Rs 2.1 billion in the same quarter last year, an increase of 61%.

The company's EBITDA came in at Rs 11.9 billion for the year ended March 2021, up 12% as against Rs 10.6 billion in the same quarter last year.

Commenting on the results, Abhijit Roy, MD, and CEO at Berger Paints said that the company witnessed strong volume growth.

It's seeing strong demand in the marketplace and saw strong growth in waterproofing and construction chemicals.

"It won't be easy to maintain margin at current levels adding that old inventory raw material advantage has gone. Saboo coatings grew 60% in Q4," he added.

The company's board of directors has recommended a dividend of Rs 2.8 per equity share having a face value of Rs 1 each that is 280% for the financial year ended March 2021.

Berger Paints share price ended the day down by 3.7% on the BSE.

Speaking of Berger Paints, have a look at the chart below to see how the company has performed over the past year:

In the past year, shares of the company have gained 74.3%. How the stock of Berger Paints performs in the coming months remains to be seen.

Moving on to news from the IPO space...

Paytm Plans to Launch India's Biggest IPO

Paytm, India's leading digital payments provider is aiming to raise about Rs 218 bn in an initial public offering (IPO) late this year, according to a source familiar with the deal, in what could be the country's largest debut ever.

The startup, backed by investors including Berkshire Hathaway Inc., SoftBank Group Corp., and Ant Group Co., plans to list in India around November and its offering could coincide with the Diwali festival season.

Paytm, formally called One 97 Communications, is targeting a valuation of around US$ 25 billion to US$ 30 billion.

If successful, Paytm's initial share sale would surpass Coal India's offering, which raised more than Rs 150 bn in 2010 in the country's largest IPO so far.

Banks shortlisted to run the Paytm offering include Morgan Stanley, Citigroup Inc., and JPMorgan Chase & Co.

The process is expected to get rolling in late June or early July.

The public market debut will include a mix of new and existing shares to meet regulatory obligations in India. The country's regulations require that 10% of shares are floated within two years and 25% within five years.