Nifty 50 closed at 25,056.90 (-112.6, -0.5%) , BSE Sensex closed at 81,715.63 (-386.5, -0.5%) while the broader Nifty 500 closed at 23,178.25 (-147, -0.6%). Market breadth is overwhelmingly negative. Of the 2,551 stocks traded today, 788 were gainers and 1,722 were losers.
Indian indices closed in the red as persistent foreign outflows overshadowed hopes of a festive-season boost to consumption. The Indian volatility index, Nifty VIX, declined 1.3% and closed at 10.4 points. Swiggy closed 2.3% lower as its board of directors approved the sale of its quick commerce business, Instamart, to its step-down subsidiary, Scootsy Logistics, at a book value of Rs 2,976.7 crore.
Nifty Midcap 100 & Nifty Smallcap 100 closed in the red, following the benchmark index. Nifty Realty and BSE Realty Index were among the top index losers today. According to Trendlyne’s Sector dashboard, Utilities emerged as the worst-performing sector of the day, with a fall of 2%.
Asian indices closed mixed, while European indices are trading in the red. US index futures traded higher indicating a positive start to the trading session. S&P Global’s US composite PMI fell to 53.6 in September from 54.6 last month, missing expectations. Meanwhile, the US plans further changes to the H-1B visa program, with the Department of Homeland Security proposing a shift from the current lottery system to a weighted selection process.
Relative strength index (RSI) indicates that stocks like Tata Investment Corp, Maruti Suzuki, Adani Enterprises, and Axis Bank are in the overbought zone.
ICICI Securities initiates coverage on South Indian Bank with a 'Buy' call and a target price of Rs 38 per share. This indicates a potential upside of 27.1%. The brokerage believes that the management's pivot towards higher-yielding retail & micro, small & medium enterprises (MSME) lending, with a reduction in legacy book, will improve asset quality. It expects the bank's net interest income (NII) to grow at a CAGR of 9% over FY26-27.
Bhansali Engineering Polymers falls as it plans to reduce its expansion plans to add 25 kilo tonnes per annum (KTPA). The company earlier planned to add 125 KPTA of capacity with a capex of Rs 1,700 crore. This move enables the company to fund the expansion through internal accruals.
Reliance Industries' unit, Reliance Consumer Products, to invest Rs 1,156 crore to set up a manufacturing facility at SIPCOT Allikulam Industrial Park in Tamil Nadu. The unit will produce biscuits, spices, wheat flour, edible oil, and more.
GAIL's board approves the expansion of the Jamnagar-Loni Petroleum Product (JLPL) LPG pipeline capacity from 3.3 million metric tonnes per annum (MMTPA) to 6.5 MMTPA. The company plans to invest Rs 5,363.9 crore in the project, which is scheduled for completion within 36 months.
Dabur India rises as its tax demand drops to Rs 272 crore from Rs 321 crore. The reduction comes after orders from the local assistant commissioner, following directions from the CGST Appeals Commissionerate in Chandigarh.
ideaForge Technology is rising as it forms a 50:50 joint venture (JV) with First Breach to manufacture and distribute unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) in the US.
NTPC is rising as it reportedly seeks government approval to acquire nuclear reactors in bulk with a capacity of 700-1,730 MW.
Sandeep Poundrik, Secretary at the Ministry of Steel, expects steel consumption to grow by 9–10% in FY26, supported by GST measures. He notes a sharp decline in steel imports from China compared to last year amid safeguard duties. The current safeguard duty remains in place until the first week of November. Poundrik also highlights the government's target to reach a production capacity of 300 metric tonnes by 2030.
Canara Bank, Indian Bank, and Bank of India rise as the government reportedly plans to raise foreign investment limits in PSU banks from 20% to 49%, while retaining a majority 51% stake. The move is expected to boost capital inflows into the sector.
Oil & Natural Gas Corp is rising as it reportedly plans to acquire 2.5-3 gigawatt (GW) of renewable energy projects by 2030. This will more than double the company's current renewable energy capacity of 2.5 GW.
Torrent Pharmaceuticals receives approval from South Africa's Competition Commission to acquire a controlling stake in JB Chemicals & Pharmaceuticals from KKR.
Global research firm HSBC upgrades India’s equities to ‘Overweight’, citing attractive valuations, supportive government policies, and steady domestic investor flows. It projects the Sensex could reach 94,000 by 2026-end, an upside of over 13% from current levels. The move reflects a shift in HSBC’s regional strategy, positioning India as a more appealing market amid broader volatility in Asia.
VIP Industries’ board approves the appointment of Atul Jain as the Managing Director (MD) for five years, succeeding Neetu Kashiramka, effective September 23.
360 One Wam rises as it receives approval from the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) to merge its subsidiary, MAVM Angels Network (MVAM), into its arm, 360 ONE Distribution Services (DSL).
Kaynes Technology is rising as its board of directors appoints Muthukumar Narayanaswamy as the Managing Director for five years, effective September 24.
Ashok Leyland declines as Goldman Sachs downgrades its rating to 'Neutral' with a target price of Rs 140. The brokerage sees limited upside, as gains from the shift to higher-tonnage vehicles and margin improvement are largely priced in. However, it highlights potential upside risks from increasing replacement demand and stronger consumption-driven sectors. Additional growth drivers include better-than-expected performance in light commercial vehicles, particularly Ashok Leyland’s new Saathi range.
Minda Corp surges as it projects a 3.4X revenue growth to Rs 17,500 crore by 2030 from Rs 5,100 crore in FY25. It also expects EBITDA margin to rise from 11.4% to over 12.5%, net debt-to-equity to halve to 0.3X, and return on capital employed (ROCE) to cross 25%.
Imperial Chemical Industries is reportedly set to offload up to a 5% stake in Akzo Nobel India through a Rs 742.7 crore block deal. The floor price for the transaction is fixed at Rs 3,261.8 per share.
Torrent Power acquires a 51% stake (or 12 lakh shares) in Newzone India and a 100% stake (or 30 lakh shares) in Newzone Power Projects for Rs 211 crore.
Elara initiates coverage on CarTrade Tech with a 'Buy' rating and target price of Rs 3,590. The brokerage believes OLX India’s acquisition has strengthened C2C auto classifieds, expanded categories, and boosted lead generation and pricing power. It highlights strong cash flows and strategic investments in tech, EVs, and remarketing, supporting growth with a solid balance sheet. Elara projects a revenue CAGR of 25–28%, with EBITDA margin rising to 30.6% by FY28.
VMS TMT's shares debut on the bourses at a 6% premium to the issue price of Rs 99. The Rs 148.5 crore IPO received bids for 102.3 times the total shares on offer.
Bajaj Electricals surges more than 10% as its board of directors approves the acquisition of the Morphy Richards brand in India, Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh, Maldives, and Sri Lanka from Glen Electric for Rs 146 crore.
Swiggy falls as its board of directors approves the sale of its quick commerce business, Instamart, to its step-down subsidiary, Scootsy Logistics, at a book value of Rs 2,976.7 crore. The board also approves selling 10 shares and 1.6 lakh compulsorily convertible preference shares (CCPS) in Roppen Transportations Services (Rapido) to MIH Investments One BV for Rs 1,968 crore.
Dilip Buildcon rises sharply as its joint venture (JV) with PSP bags a Rs 1,115.4 crore order for infrastructure works at Pudussery Central & Kannambra of Palakkad Node in Kerala. The company will undertake the design, construction, testing, commissioning, and operation & maintenance of the Kerala industrial corridor.
Nifty 50 was trading at 25,092.30 (-77.2, -0.3%), BSE Sensex was trading at 81,917.65 (-184.5, -0.2%), while the broader Nifty 500 was trading at 23,252.50 (-72.8, -0.3%).
Market breadth is in the red. Of the 2,079 stocks traded today, 761 were on the uptick, and 1,255 were down.
Riding High:
Largecap and midcap gainers today include Jubilant Foodworks Ltd. (630.40, 2.2%), Pidilite Industries Ltd. (1,519.50, 2.0%) and Indian Bank (708.20, 1.9%).
Downers:
Largecap and midcap losers today include Adani Power Ltd. (144.50, -11.0%), Adani Total Gas Ltd. (667.30, -7.7%) and Godrej Properties Ltd. (2,019.10, -4.0%).
Volume Rockets
14 stocks in BSE 500 are trading on high volumes today.
Top high volume gainers on BSE included Tata Investment Corporation Ltd. (8,863.50, 8.9%), Minda Corporation Ltd. (579.10, 8.3%) and Deepak Fertilisers & Petrochemicals Corporation Ltd. (1,580.30, 4.1%).
Top high volume losers on BSE were Ingersoll-Rand (India) Ltd. (3,978.20, -0.6%), Aether Industries Ltd. (736.80, -0.6%) and Akzo Nobel India Ltd. (3,390.10, -0.1%).
Himadri Speciality Chemical Ltd. (467.85, 3.6%) was trading at 27.8 times of weekly average. Shyam Metalics and Energy Ltd. (918.80, 1.8%) and Go Digit General Insurance Ltd. (358.85, 0.8%) were trading with volumes 4.6 and 4.2 times weekly average respectively on BSE at the time of posting this article.
BSE 500: highs, lows and moving averages
13 stocks hit their 52 week highs, while 2 stocks tanked below their 52 week lows.
Stocks touching their year highs included - Bajaj Finance Ltd. (1,029.75, 0.4%), Canara Bank (122.91, 0.8%) and Indian Bank (708.20, 1.9%).
Stocks making new 52 weeks lows included - Crompton Greaves Consumer Electricals Ltd. (300.05, -1.7%) and Praj Industries Ltd. (369.40, -2.9%).
4 stocks climbed above their 200 day SMA including Himadri Speciality Chemical Ltd. (467.85, 3.6%) and Premier Energies Ltd. (1,044.70, 3.2%). 28 stocks slipped below their 200 SMA including PB Fintech Ltd. (1,735.20, -3.7%) and DLF Ltd. (733.65, -3.4%).