Sensex closes 71 points lower, Nifty at 24,366: 5 reasons behind today's stock moves

The equity benchmark indices BSE Sensex and NSE Nifty failed to hold their intra-day recovery on Friday (August 14) with the Sensex slipping 71 points to 78,009 and the Nifty falling 30 points to 24,366.

But the headline indices did not tell the entire story. The Nifty Bank gained 144 points to 57,491, while the Midcap index advanced 339 points to 63,782. Market breadth favoured declines, with the advance-decline ratio at 1:1.

Here are five developments that explain the major moves during Friday's session:

1. Why did Nalco fall 6%?

National Aluminium Company (Nalco) fell 6%, while Hindalco Industries declined nearly 2%. The moves came as Alunorte ramped up production.

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2. Why did Tata Motors PV slip over 4%?

Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles declined more than 4%, with Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) dragging its first-quarter performance.

3. Why did Zee Entertainment surge intra-day?

Zee Entertainment Enterprises saw a sharp intra-day surge after the Securities Appellate Tribunal (SAT) stayed the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) order.

4. Which stocks saw the biggest gains?

Apollo Hospitals Enterprise ended as the top Nifty gainer, rising over 3% after raising guidance. Galaxy Surfactants surged 20% after raising its earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) per tonne guidance. LG Electronics India ended at the day's high, gaining over 9% on its first-quarter results.

Sudip Bandopadhyay, Market Expert, Inditrade Capital, on LG Electronics, said, "I do like LG Electronics at current levels. In fact, I think the management also talked about it. Whenever Diwali gets delayed, I think it helps these consumer durable companies.

And I'm reasonably confident that the way consumption is picking up, and the expectation of consumption picking up even more during the festive season, LG will be one of the beneficiaries. They have a wide basket of products, and they're very well positioned to take advantage of an increase in consumer durable spending. So, LG Electronics, definitely a buy at current levels."

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5. Why did Ashok Leyland fall despite a Q1 beat?

Ashok Leyland ended nearly 3% lower, despite its first-quarter performance being a mild beat to estimates.

From the Sensex basket, Apollo Hospitals Enterprise Ltd, Bharti Airtel Ltd, Adani Ports & Special Economic Zone Ltd, Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd, Eternal Ltd and Titan Company Ltd were the major gainers.

Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles Ltd, Jio Financial Services Ltd, Asian Paints Ltd, Oil and Natural Gas Corporation Ltd, NTPC Ltd and InterGlobe Aviation Ltd were the biggest laggards.

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MARKET THIS WEEK (August 10 to 14)

The market snapped its second consecutive weekly gaining streak, with both the Nifty and Sensex declining nearly 1% each during the week. Sector-wise, metals, fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) and auto stocks were among the biggest decliners. The Nifty Metal index fell nearly 2%.

More than 35 Nifty stocks ended the week with losses, with declines of up to 6%. Max Health was the top Nifty loser. Among the top Nifty gainers were Titan, Bharat Electronics (BEL), Dr Reddy's Laboratories (DRL), Bharti Airtel and Eternal.

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Max Health, UltraTech Cement, Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles and SBI Life Insurance were the top Nifty losers. In the midcap space, LG Electronics India, Vodafone Idea, Oracle Financial Services Software (OFSS), Jubilant FoodWorks and Max Financial Services were among the top gainers.

On the other hand, National Aluminium Company (NALCO), Laurus Labs, L&T Finance, One97 Communications (Paytm) and Aurobindo Pharma were the top midcap losers.