Nifty 50 closed at 21,731.40 (-47.3, -0.2%), BSE Sensex closed at 72,240.26 (-170.1, -0.2%) while the broader Nifty 500 closed at 19,429.15 (29.9, 0.2%), of the 2,025 stocks traded today, 1,071 were on the uptick, and 905 were down.

Indian indices closed in the red on the last trading session of 2023, with the benchmark Nifty 50 index falling 47.3 points and closing at 21,731.4 points. However, in 2023, Nifty 50 rose 19.9% while the BSE Sensex closed 18.6% higher.

Nifty Smallcap 100 and Nifty Midcap 100 closed in the green, outperforming the benchmark index. Nifty Metal and Nifty Media closed higher than their Thursday close. According to Trendlyne's sector dashboard, Telecom Services was the top-performing sector of the day while Telecommunications Equipment was the highest-gaining sector in 2023.

Major Asian indices closed flat or higher except for India’s BSE Sensex and Japan’s Nikkei 225 closing in the red. European indices traded higher amid mixed global cues. US index futures traded flat, indicating a cautious start to the trading session. Brent crude oil futures traded flat and are set to post a decline of around 9.8% in 2023.

• Money flow index (MFI) indicates that stocks like Castrol India, Hindustan Copper, Pfizer and Fine Organic Industries are in the overbought zone.

• Redington rises despite receiving an income tax demand notice of Rs 136 crore for the assessment year 2021-22. The company appears in a screener of stocks with declining net profit and margins.

• Power Mech Projects rises as it wins orders worth Rs 2,192 crore for mining river bed minerals in Dehradun, Haridwar, Udham Singh Nagar and Nainital, and for the development of a coal-fired power plant in Andhra Pradesh.

• Nazara Technologies' arm Nodwin Gaming invests $5 million in its subsidiary, Nodwin Gaming International, through the subscription of 26,267 shares. Nodwin now holds a 100% stake in Nodwin Gaming International.

• Reports suggest that the Indian government plans to replace 8,00,000 diesel buses with electric buses by 2030. Following the news, auto stocks related to EV buses, like Tata Motors, Olectra Greentech, JBM Auto and Ashok Leyland, along with auto component manufacturers like Samvardhana Motherson and NRB Bearings, are rising in trade.

• Plutus Wealth Management buys a 0.6% stake in Zee Entertainment Enterprises for approx Rs 165 crore in a bulk deal on Thursday.

• GE T&D India surges to an all-time high after it wins an order worth 74 million British pounds (Rs 784.7 crore) from UK Grid Solutions. The contract is for the supply and manufacturing of HVDC converter transformers.

• Between October 2019 and March 2023, Gujarat received foreign direct investment worth Rs 2.39 lakh crore ($31 billion), placing it among the top Indian states in terms of attracting FDI. In 2022-23, the state had a surge in FDI of approximately 84% YoY, which was the highest among all the states and Union Territories.

  Gujarat has received FDI worth Rs 2.39 lakh cr or $31 billion between October 2019 and March 2023 and is among the top Indian states in attracting FDI#Gujarat #FDI #India https://t.co/HVSeVqnK4d

  — Business Standard (@bsindia) December 29, 2023

• Telecom stocks like Vodafone Idea, RailTel Corp of India, Indus Towers and Mahanagar Telephone Nigam are rising in trade. The broader sectoral index, BSE Telecom, is also trading in the green.

• Venus Pipes & Tubes rises as DAM Capital initiates a 'Buy' coverage with a target price of Rs 1,810. The brokerage is optimistic as it believes the company is building a niche in the high-margin stainless steel pipes space and emerging as a key player with significant growth prospects.

• Tata Coffee rises as the record date for its merger with Tata Consumer Products is set for January 15, 2024. Simultaneously, Tata Coffee’s plantation arm will be demerged and amalgamated into TCPL Beverages & Foods.

• Lakshmipathy Deenadayalan, CMD of Five Star Business Finance, says that the company has raised Rs 1,000 crore in the past 90 days. He forecasts a 30% growth in assets under management (AUM) for FY24. Deenadayalan also expects the net interest margin (NIM) to stabilise at 14-15%, highlighting the company's focus on secured long-term loans.

  The small business loan segment continues to do well. The mgmt of Five Star Business tells us,
  
  - Raised Rs.1000cr in last 90 days, at 9.59%, have seen 9 bps rise in cost
  
  - On a steady state: NIMs will be settling between 14-15%
  
  - FY'24 AUM growth guidance at 30%
  
  - Abundant… https://t.co/3CvFUlIS4A

  — Prashant Nair (@_prashantnair) December 29, 2023

• Shakti Pumps (India) rises as it wins an order worth Rs 258 crore from the Haryana Renewable Energy Department. The contract involves the supply, installation and commissioning of 6,408 solar water pumps within 90 days.

• ICICI Lombard General Insurance falls as it receives a GST demand notice for Rs 1,728 crore and a penalty of Rs 172 crore, covering the period from July 2017 to March 2022. The company appears in a screener of stocks with declining net cash flow.

• Motilal Oswal maintains its 'Buy' rating on GAIL (India) and raises the target price to Rs 195, as it believes that the company's return on equity and free cash flow have improved sharply. The brokerage also mentions that an increased contribution from GAIL's transmission sector has enhanced its earnings visibility.

  Brokerage Radar | MOSL on GAIL maintains buy, hikes target price of Rs.195 from Rs.140@MotilalOswalAMC @gailindia pic.twitter.com/n6qvIkyokI

  — ET NOW (@ETNOWlive) December 29, 2023

• Techno Electric & Engineering rises to an all-time high of Rs 844.5 as it bags orders worth Rs 1,750 crore from various domestic clients. The order involves the construction of transmission systems and the supply of advanced metering infrastructure.

• Swan Energy trades flat as its board approves a plan to raise Rs 4,000 crore through various financial instruments. The company appears in a screener of stocks with improving book value per share.

• Innova Captab’s shares debut on the bourses at a 0.9% premium to the issue price of Rs 448. The Rs 570 crore IPO has received bids for 55.3 times the total shares on offer.

• Sanjeev Asthana, CEO of Patanjali Foods, says that the company intends to increase its revenue share from the food and FMCG businesses, setting a target of Rs 45,000 crore for FY24. He foresees food contributing 50% to its sales in the next 3-4 years and says it has no plans to demerge the company's businesses.

  #OnCNBCTV18 | Will reach 50% revenue from food in 3-4 years vs earlier guided 5 years. Have no plans to demerge company’s businesses, says Sanjeev Asthana of #Patanjali pic.twitter.com/ezzmpd7pw7

  — CNBC-TV18 (@CNBCTV18Live) December 29, 2023

• ICICI Prudential Asset Management and ICICI Prudential Life Insurance receive Reserve Bank of India's approval to acquire aggregate holding of up to 10% of the paid-up share capital in RBL Bank.

• Kalpataru Projects rises to an all-time high of Rs 725 as it bags orders worth Rs 3,244 crore from various domestic and overseas clients. The orders involve the construction of a residential project, an underground metro project and a transmission & distribution system in South India and overseas.

• Punjab National Bank's board approves a proposal to raise Rs 7,500 crore in one or more tranches during the 2024-25 period. The capital will be raised through a qualified institutional placement, a follow-on public offering, or other permitted methods, or a combination of these.

• Promoters K Vamshidhar Reddy, A Manogna and Mitta Madhavi sell a sum of 0.5% stake in MTAR Technologies on Thursday. They now hold 6.1%, 1.7% and 1.8%, respectively.

Riding High:

Largecap and midcap gainers today include Vodafone Idea Ltd. (16.00, 20.75%), Indus Towers Ltd. (199.05, 6.96%) and 3M India Ltd. (37,309.15, 6.32%).

Downers:

Largecap and midcap losers today include Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd. (398.90, -4.49%), Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd. (450.65, -3.25%) and Oil India Ltd. (372.15, -2.76%).

Volume Rockets

34 stocks in BSE 500 are trading on high volumes today.

Top high volume gainers on BSE included Vodafone Idea Ltd. (16.00, 20.75%), Kalpataru Projects International Ltd. (709.20, 7.85%) and Indus Towers Ltd. (199.05, 6.96%).

Top high volume losers on BSE were Privi Speciality Chemicals Ltd. (1,176.25, -4.32%), CIE Automotive India Ltd. (470.70, -0.91%) and Ratnamani Metals & Tubes Ltd. (3,363.25, -0.86%).

Godrej Industries Ltd. (744.45, 5.60%) was trading at 12.0 times of weekly average. Avanti Feeds Ltd. (420.05, 4.69%) and Chalet Hotels Ltd. (696.45, 2.57%) were trading with volumes 9.0 and 8.3 times weekly average respectively on BSE at the time of posting this article.

BSE 500: highs, lows and moving averages

71 stocks made 52 week highs,

Stocks touching their year highs included - 3M India Ltd. (37,309.15, 6.32%), Ajanta Pharma Ltd. (2,083.65, 4.48%) and Amara Raja Energy & Mobility Ltd. (816.00, -0.54%).

9 stocks climbed above their 200 day SMA including KRBL Ltd. (375.10, 4.09%) and Dabur India Ltd. (557.20, 2.60%). 3 stocks slipped below their 200 SMA including Data Patterns (India) Ltd. (1,861.20, -1.09%) and Aegis Logistics Ltd. (351.90, 0.21%).