After opening on a negative note, Indian benchmark indices continued their downfall throughout the session, ended the day in the red.

The BSE and the NSE benchmark traded with a negative bias amid some profit-taking in the aftermath of the terror attack in Pahalgam, Jammu & Kashmir, and monthly futures & options expiry on the NSE.

At the closing bell, the BSE Sensex  closed lower by 315 points (down 0.4%)

Meanwhile, the NSE Nifty closed points 82 lower (down 0.3%)

IndusInd Bank, UltraTech Cement, and Tata Motors are among the top gainers today

HUL, Bharti Airtel, and M&M, on the other hand, were among the top losers today.

The GIFT Nifty was trading at  24,392, higher by 75 points at the time of writing.

The BSE MidCap index ended 0.2% lower, and the BSE SmallCap index ended 0.1% lower.

Sectoral indices were trading mixed today, with stocks in the real estate sector and the media sector witnessing selling pressure. Meanwhile, stocks in the metal sector and the healthcare sector witnessed buying.

The rupee is trading at Rs 85.6 against the US$.

Gold prices for the latest contract on MCX are trading 1.1% lower at Rs 95,805 per 10 grams.

Meanwhile, silver prices were trading 0.5% lower at Rs 97,309 per 1 kg.
 

Nestle Shares Fall on Profit Decline

In the news from the FMCG sector, shares of Nestle dropped over 5% on Thursday. This happened after the company reported decline in net profit of 5% year-on-year (YoY) for the march quarter of the previous year Q4.

The company profits decline by 5% to Rs 8.9 billion (bn). The drop occurred in the January to March quarter. However, the company's sales revenue increased by 4.5% to Rs 55.04 bn.

The company's operating profit increased by 3% to Rs 13.9 bn in the March quarter. Although the company's profit margin slightly declined to 25.2 from 25.6% its domestic sales reached a high record of Rs 52.4 bn.

Additionally, Nestle saw a double-digit growth in its beverage with three out of four products group performing well.

Nestle will invest Rs 65 bn in India from 2020 to 2025 to expand its capabilities. The company is setting up a new factory in Odisha with an initial investment of Rs 9 bn to make food products.

The company announced a dividend of Rs 10 per share for the financial year ended 31 March 2025.

HUL Shares Fall on Margin Concerns

Moving on to the news from FMCG sector, shares of Hindustan Unilever Ltd.'s an FMCG company took a sharp decline after the company reports its earnings for the quarter ending March.

The company's guidance for the future profit margin was lower than expectations.

HUL expects its profit margin to decrease in short term due to its focus on offering good value products at the right prices. However, the company expects its earning to improve gradually over year with the margin of 22 to 23%.

If raw material prices stay the same, the company expects prices to rise slightly. The Company will focus on increasing sales volume rather than just raising price.

The company's profit rose 3.7% to Rs 24.9 bn in the march quarter. Revenue increased 2.1% Rs 150 bn. The personal care segment saw a profit of 5%, with Bodywash growing rapidly.

Beverages saw slow growth in tea due to increased prices, while coffee sales continued to grow rapidly. The company remained the leader in the Tea market.

The Home care segment earned Rs 58.2 bn a 2% increase from last year driven by strong sales of premium fabric wash and fabric conditioners.
 

Cement Stocks Soar 5% today

Moving on to the news from construction sector, shares of the cement company rally 5% on Thursday after Dalmia Bharat's performance improved due to increased sales volume and better operational efficiency.

Dalima Bharat is a leading Indian Cement Company. Its production capacity of 49.5 million tons, making it the fourth largest cement manufacture in India.

Meanwhile, UltraTech Cement share price increased a new high of Rs 12,187.9 rising in 2% in a single trading session than previous high of Rs 12,143.

JK Cement's share price also hit a new high of Rs 5,265.8 rise 4%. The Stock has jumped 25% from its recent low of Rs 4,225 just over a month ago.

Cement companies are expected to benefit from strong demand and may increase prices by Rs 10-15 per bag in April due to rising pet coke prices.

UltraTech Cement is a leading Indian cement company, part of Aditya Birla Group, with the production capacity of 177.7 million tons. It has a strong presence across India and internationally with several operations in countries. Founded in 2000, Ultra Tech is the market leader in the Indian cement Industry.

Other notable cement stocks were on high including ACC, Birla Corporation, Grasim Industries, Shree Cement and Ramco Cement with gains from 1% to 3%.

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