After opening the day marginally higher, Indian share markets climbed steadily throughout the trading session and ended near the day's high.

Benchmark indices rose for the seventh session in a row as strong earnings from major firms like Bajaj Finance overshadowed rising recession fears in the US.

At the closing bell, the BSE Sensex stood higher by 349 points (up 0.6%).

Meanwhile, the NSE Nifty closed higher by 101 points (up 0.6%).

Bajaj Auto and BPCL were among the top gainers today.

HDFC Life Insurance and HUL on the other hand, were among the top losers today.

The SGX Nifty was trading at 18,003, up by 89 points, at the time of writing.

The BSE Midcap index ended 0.5% higher. While the BSE SmallCap index ended 0.6% higher.

Sectoral indices ended on a mixed note with stocks in the realty sector and IT sector witnessing most of the buying.

While power stocks witnessed selling.

Shares of Bajaj Auto and Nestle hit their 52-week highs today.

Now track the biggest movers of the stock market using the stocks to watch today section. This should help you keep updated with the latest developments...

Asian share markets ended the day on a positive note. The Hang Seng rose 0.4%, while the Shanghai Composite index ended 0.7% higher. The Nikkei edged marginally higher.

The rupee is trading at 81.83 against the US$.

Gold prices for the latest contract on MCX are trading higher by 0.5% at Rs 60,165 per 10 grams.

Meanwhile, silver prices for the latest contract on MCX are trading up by 0.8% at Rs 75,600 per kg.
 

HUL Q4 profit jumps 10%, company declares dividend

In news from the FMCG sector, Hindustan Unilever Limited (HUL) today reported a 10.8% YoY increase in revenue to Rs 150.5 billion (bn) compared to the same period last year. The jump was led by higher demand for its home, beauty, and personal care products.

Net profit for the quarter came in at Rs 25.5 bn, up 9.6% YoY.

HUL's home care division delivered another quarter of solid performance with 19% revenue growth. Both fabric wash and household care grew in strong double digits. Beauty & personal care grew 10% with broad-based performance across categories.

Foods & refreshments grew 3% YoY led by foods, coffee, and health food drinks (HFD).

Gross margin improved by 1.2% sequentially due to input cost reduction.

The company's board has proposed a final dividend of Rs 22 per share. Together with an interim dividend of Rs 17 per share, the total value for the year amounts to Rs 39 per share, an increase of 15% vs FY22.

Did you know HUL was a big underperformer two decades ago? Between 2002 and 2007, the Nifty went up over 250%. In the same period, HUL was actually down 19%.

But for the next 5-year period between 2007-2012, HUL was up 97% while the Nifty was down 6.5%

HUL is the fifth-largest FMCG player by growth and largest player by market share. HUL is one of the best FMCG stocks.
 

Why Goldiam International's share price jumped 3% today

Moving on to news from the jewelry sector, shares of Goldiam International gained 3% today after the company received export orders worth Rs 500 m for manufacturing diamond-studded gold jewelry.

Lab-grown diamond jewelry contributes around 35% of the export order.

The company expects this order to be executed before 30 August 2023. The total order book of the company stands at nearly Rs 1 bn. Goldiam International expects the total order book to be executed in four to six months.

The company has a presence in natural and lab-based diamonds, catering to the US, the largest jewelry market in the world.

More companies are focusing on lab-based diamonds given the advantages it enjoys, apart from the pricing difference.

Additionally, the company is looking to enter the domestic market for lab-grown diamonds, which we believe is the logical move given the spending patterns in India.

Apart from this, the smallcap company also consistently pays dividends to its shareholders and has carried out six share buybacks in the last six years.

With its acquisitions and aggressive capex plans, it is among the top Jewellery stocks in India.
 

Why Bajaj Finance's share price is rising

Moving to news from the finance sector, shares of NBFC Bajaj Finance rose 3% today after the firm posted a consolidated net profit of Rs 31.6 bn, 30% YoY in the March 2023 quarter.

The net interest income (NII) for the reporting period surged 28% YoY to Rs 77.7 bn from Rs 60.6 bn in the year-ago period. Further, operating expenses to the net interest income were at 34.1% against 34.5% a year back.

Assets under management (AUM) rose 29% to Rs 2.47 trillion (tn) at the end of the March 2023 quarter from Rs 1.92 tn as of March 2022 quarter.

The board of Bajaj Finance also recommended a dividend of Rs 30 per share for the financial year 2023.

So far, in 2023, Bajaj Finance has fallen over 5%. Whereas the stock has declined around 11% in the last six months.

More By This Author: