Asian share markets are trading lower today as investors weighed corporate earnings and economic growth outlook in a busy week.

The Nikkei is trading higher by 0.3% while the Hang Seng is trading by 1.6% lower. The Shanghai Composite is trading lower by 0.4%.

The Nasdaq closed lower on Monday, underperforming the S&P 500 and the Dow, with pressure from high-profile mega caps as investors awaited results from companies including Microsoft, while Tesla shares fell on concerns about its spending plans.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.2% while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite ended marginally lower.

Here's a table showing how US stocks performed on Monday:

Source: Equitymaster

Back home, Indian share markets are trading on a flat note following the trend on SGX Nifty.

At present, the BSE Sensex is trading higher by 30 points. Meanwhile, the NSE Nifty is trading up by 12 points.

IndusInd Bank and Bajaj Finance are among the top gainers today.

Asian Paints and Wipro on the other hand are among the top losers today.

Broader markets are trading on a positive note. The BSE Mid Cap index is flat and the BSE Small Cap index is trading higher by 0.4%.

Sectoral indices are trading on a mixed note. Stocks in the realty sector and power sector are witnessing buying.

On the other hand, stocks in the consumer durables sector and healthcare sector witnessed selling.

Shares of Bajaj Auto and Glenmark Pharma hit their 52-week high today.

The rupee is trading at Rs 81.94 against the US dollar.

In commodity markets, gold prices are trading higher by Rs 56 at Rs 60,057 per 10 grams.

Meanwhile, silver prices are trading lower by 0.1% Rs 74,904 per 1 kg.

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...

Speaking of stock markets, drones are the next big thing. From spreading fertilizers, seeds, and pollination, to sending vaccines, delivering a regular parcel, surveillance measures, disease control, mining, disaster management, and so on... drones have risen beyond a concept and imagination to become a part of regular life.

And yet, this is just the beginning for India. The country aims to position itself as a global drone hub by 2030.
 

Welspun India to consider share buyback and dividend

Welspun India will discuss the buyback of its equity shares and dividend announcement during its meeting scheduled on 27 April. The company will also announce its Q4 results after the completion of its board meeting.

The stock exchange filing did not specify the quantum of share buyback and dividend amount the board of directors will consider as part of the proposal.

A buyback is expected to generally enhance the return on equity by distributing cash and reducing the equity base, eventually resulting in an increase in long-term value for shareholders.

Moreover, the buyback would offer shareholders an opportunity to increase their stake in the company by improving the percentage of their holding and hence improve earnings per share in the long term.

The textile company has a good dividend track report and has consistently declared dividends for the last 5 years. The last buyback carried out by Welspun India was in the financial year 2021-22.

For the year ending March 2022, Welspun India declared an equity dividend of 15% amounting to Rs 0.15 per share.
 

Outlook for FMCG companies

The Nifty FMCG index has been among the top gainers so far this year, led by a sustained rally in ITC. The index hit an all-time high yesterday after gaining about 6% this year.

In comparison, benchmarks Sensex and Nifty were down with negative returns of just over 1%.

Among the FMCG pack, ITC has gained the most with a 22% return this year. It is followed by Varun Beverages, which has risen 8% on a YTD basis.

FMCG sector revenue growth is expected to be in the mid-teens for the financial year 2023, mainly supported by price growth as the companies had taken price hikes to compensate for the elevated input prices while volumes were weak.

Margins were impacted but started to showcase some improvement in the second half of the financial year 2023 due to a decline in input prices.

However, a normal monsoon is an essential factor for a meaningful demand recovery in rural areas, and there are reports of the possibility of El-Nino this year.

El Nino refers to the large-scale ocean-atmosphere climate interaction linked to periodic warming in sea surface temperatures across the central and east-central Equatorial Pacific.

It is associated with high pressure in the western Pacific. El Nino adversely impacts the Indian monsoons and hence, agriculture in India.

Stock-wise, despite the stellar run, market experts believe the rally in ITC may continue in the near term. The stock is trading at a steep discount to another heavyweight HUL. ITC's price-to-earnings multiple is 33 times, whereas that of HUL's is nearly twice at 67 times.

Speaking of HUL, here's some interesting data on the stock, between 2002 to 2010, HUL's stock price went nowhere...have a look at the chart below:

A Journey of No Returns in a So-Called Safe Stock

The stock was basically in an 8-year coma. The returns could barely even make up for the inflation. However, over the 2010 to 2020 period, HUL delivered a whopping return of 30% CAGR!
 

Mahindra Lifespaces Developers gets a new project

Mahindra Lifespace Developers, the real estate and infrastructure development arm of the Mahindra Group, has entered into an agreement to redevelop a housing society in Mumbai's Malad suburb.

The project to be developed on the land parcel spread over around 3.7 acres is estimated to offer Mahindra Lifespaces developers a revenue potential of around Rs 8.5 billion (bn).

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