What happened in the Indian share market today?

On March 22, 2024, the Sensex commenced trading at 72,231.66, climbing to an intraday peak of 73,115.62 and bottoming out at 72,172.09. It concluded the session at 72,831.94, marking a 191-point increase, or 0.26%.

Similarly, the Nifty 50 began at 21,932.20, reached a high of 22,180.70 and a low of 21,883.30, and settled at 22,096.75, up 85 points, or 0.39%. 

Moreover, the BSE-listed firms witnessed a surge in market capitalisation, soaring to almost ₹382.2 lakh crore from around ₹380 lakh crore in the preceding session, resulting in a wealth addition of over ₹2 lakh crore.

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Impact on the stock market

The Nifty IT sector index recorded a decline of 2.33 %. Conversely, all other sectoral indices closed higher.

Nifty Realty and Auto saw gains of 1.76 % and 1.67 %, respectively, while the Media and Pharma indices both experienced a rise of 1.25 %.

Top gainers today

Top losers today

Market aftermath: Impact on stocks

KP Green Engineering soars 38% on SME BSE debut

KP Green Engineering debuted strongly on SME BSE on March 22, listing at a 38% premium of ₹ 200 compared to its issue price of ₹ 144. The IPO, amounting to ₹ 189.5 crore, garnered significant interest and was oversubscribed by 20 times. 

Proceeds will be allocated for capital expenditure and general corporate purposes. KP Green’s FY23 standalone net profit surged to ₹ 12.4 crore from ₹ 4.5 crore the previous year, with revenue increasing to ₹ 114.2 crore from ₹ 77.7 crore.

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Bharat Dynamics surges 2% on interim dividend approval

Bharat Dynamics shares surged 2% post-board approval of an interim dividend for FY23-24. The declared dividend of ₹8.85 per equity share of ₹10 each marks a substantial return. 

Additionally, the company plans to subdivide its equity shares, subject to shareholder nod. 

Financially, Q3 FY24 showed a robust 30.35% revenue growth and 61.25% profit increase year-on-year, despite a slight decline from the previous quarter.

IT stocks plummet

IT giants TCS, Infosys, HCL, and Wipro witnessed a 3-5% decline after Accenture slashed its FY24 revenue growth forecast to 1-3%, down from 2-5%. Accenture’s Q2FY24 revenues stood at $15.8 billion, flat YoY in constant currency. 

Despite robust outsourcing-driven deal bookings of $21.6 billion, its weak Q3 revenue guidance led to a negative market sentiment. Nomura suggests a higher cut in organic growth, with Accenture expecting flat revenue growth in consulting and mid-single-digit growth in managed services for FY24.

Oil prices dip

Brent crude settled down 0.2% at $85.78 a barrel, while US WTI futures ended 0.3% lower at $81.07, following a 1.8% decline in the previous session. US crude inventories unexpectedly dropped, but gasoline product supplied dipped below 9 million barrels, suggesting overbuying. 

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The market also reacted to reports of a UN draft resolution for a Gaza ceasefire. Investors found some relief in the US Fed’s decision to maintain interest rates at 5.25% to 5.50%.

Conclusion

In today’s stock market update for March 22, 2024, Indian indices witnessed a positive trend, with the Sensex and Nifty 50 both recording gains. 

KP Green Engineering soared on its SME BSE debut, while Bharat Dynamics saw a boost. The IT sector fell due to Accenture’s results. Despite a slight dip in oil prices, market sentiment remained upbeat. 

Stay tuned to StockGro for more insights and updates.