After opening the day on a flat note, Indian share markets traded in a rangebound manner throughout the session and ended with minor gains.

Benchmark indices ended flat to positive as high-weightage finance stocks and IT stocks gained momentum.

At the closing bell, the BSE Sensex stood higher by 64 points (up 0.1%).

Meanwhile, the NSE Nifty closed higher by 7 points.

Tata Motors and NTPC were among the top gainers today.

HUL and Eicher Motors, on the other hand, were among the top losers today.

The SGX Nifty was trading at 17,663, up by 9 points, at the time of writing.

The BSE Midcap ended flat while the BSE SmallCap index rose 0.1%.

Sectoral indices ended on a mixed note with stocks in the telecom sector and power sector witnessing buying.

While stocks in the realty sector and the metal sector witnessed selling.

Shares of ITC and NCC 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 0.1%, while the Shanghai Composite index ended flat. The Nikkei edged 0.2% higher.

The rupee is trading at 81.2 against the US$.

Gold prices for the latest contract on MCX are trading higher by 0.1% at Rs 60,370 per 10 grams.

Meanwhile, silver prices for the latest contract on MCX are trading up by 0.2% at Rs 75,615 per kg.

Speaking of stock markets, the recent crash in IT stocks presents an interesting investment opportunity. Want to buy IT stocks, but not sure if the correction is over? Instead, you could use statistical arbitrage to capture the price divergence between TCS and Infosys.
 

Tata Power to install EV stations in Coimbatore

In news from the power sector, shares of Tata Power climbed 2% today after the company announced plans to install electric vehicle (EV) charging stations in Coimbatore, a city in the southern state of Tamil Nadu.

The company aims to set up 50 EV charging stations across the city in the next six months, with each station equipped with fast-charging facilities that can charge an EV in 60 minutes.

This move is part of Tata Power's effort to expand its EV charging network in India, which currently has more than 400 charging stations in over 100 cities.

Note that the electric vehicle (EV) megatrend is a once-in-a-century revolution happening right in front of us.

The revolution has taken the auto sector by storm. All segments of the sector are ripe for disruption, and India's top EV stocks are set to benefit from this shift.

Shares of India's top renewable energy company, Tata Power, have fallen 11% so far in 2023.
 

Zee Entertainment to Close Sony Merger

Moving on to news from the media sector, Zee Entertainment Enterprises, one of India's largest media companies, has initiated settlement talks with its creditors for a potential merger with Sony Pictures Networks India.

The talks come amid reports that ZEE has been struggling with a debt burden of over US$ 1.5 billion (bn) and is looking to sell off non-core assets and reduce its debt.

According to media reports, the proposed merger with SPNI could help ZEE reduce its debt and improve its financial position. The talks are still at an early stage, and it remains to be seen whether the two companies can reach an agreement on the terms of the merger.

However, if successful, the merger would create one of the largest media companies in India, with a strong presence in both television and digital media.

Zee Entertainment Enterprises is one of India's leading media and entertainment companies.

The share price of the company took a beating in January 2022, declining 12% in a month, and has been falling since then, down 155 in 2023. 

ITC hits record high, enters Rs 5 trillion club

In the news from the FMCG sector, ITC hit a fresh lifetime high today.

With the stock price touching new highs, the company has now become the eleventh listed Indian firm to cross Rs 5 trillion (tn) market capitalization.

ITC shares have risen 55% in the last year and 5% in the past month.

The cigarette-to-flour maker is now the eighth-largest company by market capitalization in India.

Strong improvement in the businesses across verticals and the lower-than-expected impact of the tax hikes on cigarette volumes have been the key drivers for the gains in the stock.

Keeping in view the bullish outlook for earnings growth, foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) increased their ownership in the company in the last quarter. The cumulative holding of Category-I FPIs was 12.87% at the end of the March quarter, up from 12.51% a quarter ago.

GQG Partners, which recently invested Rs 150 bn in Adani Group stocks, increased its holding in ITC in the March 2023 quarter.

ITC is one of the best dividend-paying stocks. We did an editorial back in January 2022 listing the best dividend stocks you can count on.

Apart from that, we also covered an editorial a couple of months ago explaining why the prospects for ITC look good.

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