Asian shares markets are trading higher today as appetite for risk-taking returned to global markets following the deal between President Joe Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy on the US debt ceiling.

The Nikkei is trading higher by 1% and the Hang Seng index is trading lower by 0.3%. The Shanghai Composite is up 0.2%.

US stocks finished sharply higher on Friday as talks on raising the US debt ceiling progressed, while chip stocks surged for a second straight day on optimism about artificial intelligence.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average ended 1% higher and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite rallied 2.5%.

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

Source: Equitymaster

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

At present, the BSE Sensex is trading 375 points higher. Meanwhile, the NSE Nifty is trading up by 99 points.

M&M and HDFC are among the top gainers today.

Sun Pharma and Maruti Suzuki on the other hand are among the top losers today.

Check out the NSE Nifty heatmap to get the complete list of gainers and losers.

Broader markets are trading on a positive note. The BSE Mid Cap index is up 0.3% and the BSE Small Cap index is trading 0.5% higher.

Sectoral indices are trading on a mixed note. Stocks in the metal sector, and financial sector witness buying.

On the other hand, stocks in the oil & gas sector and energy sector witnessed selling.

Shares of ABB India and CRISIL hit their 52-week high today.

The rupee is trading at Rs 82.58 against the US dollar.

In commodity markets, gold prices are trading higher by 12 to Rs 59,370 per 10 grams today.

Meanwhile, silver prices are trading lower marginally at Rs 71,194 per 1 kg.
 

HUDCO Q4 results

Housing and Urban Development Corporation (HUDCO) recorded net sales of Rs 18.5 billion (bn) in March 2023 quarter, up 7.3% from Rs 17.3 bn in March 2022 quarter.

The quarterly net profit stood at Rs 6.4 bn in March 2023 quarter, down 14.4% from Rs. 7.5 bn reported in the March 2022 quarter.

Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) for March 2023 quarter was Rs 20.2 bn. It is 5.9% YoY lower from Rs 21.4 bn reported in the corresponding period one year ago.

HUDCO's EPS has decreased to Rs. 3.19 in March 2023 from Rs. 3.73 in March 2022.

Did you know that HUDCO is one of the 5 high-quality penny stocks?

The company is also known for rewarding its shareholders by making large dividend payouts. HUDCO boasts of a high dividend yield of 7.9% on its current market price.

Bajaj Electricals to increase play in the premium segment

Bajaj Electricals is increasing its play in the premium range in appliances and other segments and expects the revenue contribution from upscale products to rise as it has lined up several new launches.

The company has recently launched a new brand 'Nex', which will target upscale urban consumers with its premium range of appliances.

Despite a slowdown in some segments, Bajaj Electricals will have new product launches in the premium space and in Morphy Richards in the latter half of this year.

As a company, it expects a lot more contribution from the premium segment.

The Bajaj group company is focusing on two things brand upliftment and product premiumization -- by launching new products.

Both of these are helping the company grow market share and the Bajaj group firm will continue to focus on this strategy, he added

Over the current market scenario, there is a demand slowdown in the market for categories like fans where star rating has been implemented.

There is a cost side increase, to comply with that and we could not pass fully. Similarly in other categories, the demand is soft. There is certain discounting etc. all electric companies are resorting to and that is impacting margins.

The company expects new product launches and premiumization will help it retain its revenue growth.

It may or may not be volume growth, but as the company launches more products at least from the average selling price and portfolio mix, where the management is seeing the change.

In Q4, overall revenue from the fan segment was flat and there was de-growth in the sub-economy category but Bajaj Electricals had a growth in the premium category.

Similarly, in consumer lighting, the company has seen a degrowth because of demand being weak but it made up for that in the professional lighting. It's more about us balancing the portfolio and doing the right things in a situation when actual demand is weak.

According to the management, in the financial year 2022 sub-economy fans contributed 74% of sales in the category, which is now down to 67% as the contribution from the premium segment is picking up.

Over the expansion of distribution, the company's focus is to grow sales through distribution. The company is also witnessing good growth coming from modern trade channels helped by its premium portfolio.

On online also the company is doing fairly well, adding it contributes 12% to sales of its consumer products.

Besides consumer products and lighting solutions, Bajaj Electricals is also present in the EPC segment (Engineering Procurement & Construction) in which the company executes projects related to power transmission, distribution, and illumination.

Earlier this month Bajaj Electricals reported around 13% growth in its consolidated revenue from operations to Rs 53.4 bn for the financial year ended on 31 March 2023.

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