Market Opening Bell: Indices flat, NIFTY50 tests 24,350 mark, SENSEX above 80,300; Bajaj Finance, Finserv top losers

The Indian stock market was volatile on Wednesday, April 30, as both the equity indices opened in red as investors remained cautious amid corporate earnings and further development in the geopolitical tensions.

SENSEX turned positive after opening a gap down while NIFTY50 remained flat.

At 9:37 AM, the S&P BSE SENSEX was up 19.66 points, or 0.02%, at the 80,308.04 level, while NSE’s NIFTY50 was at the 24,355.05 level, marginally up 19.10 points, or 0.08%.

The broader market also opened under pressure, with the small-cap index declining the most.

Among sectors, Nifty PSU Bank (-1.45%) fell the most, followed by Nifty Media (-1.36%) and Nifty Auto (-0.65%). Nifty Realty, however, was the top gainer, rising 1.30%.

The market breadth remained in favour of decline as 1,752 stocks were trading in red out of 2,305 traded in the early session.

According to the exchange data, foreign institutional investors (FIIs) on Tuesday bought equities worth ₹2,385.61 crore on a net basis.

Globally, the US stocks closed in positive territory on Tuesday after a volatile session as investors kept an eye on corporate earnings, economic data and changes on the trade policy front.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 300.03 points, or 0.75%, to close at 40,527.62; the S&P 500 climbed 32.08 points, or 0.58%, to the 5,560.83 level; and the Nasdaq Composite rose 95.19 points, or 0.55%, to end at 17,461.32.

Meanwhile, the Asian markets on Wednesday began on a weak note as they struggled to follow Wall Street's rally.

Japan's Nikkei 225 was marginally up 0.11%, while the Kospi index was trading 0.52% down at the 2,551.96 level. China's Shanghai Composite also slipped 0.08%. Meanwhile, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index remained positive on Wednesday morning and gained 0.27%.

As many as 2,404 stocks traded on the NSE during the early session, among which 1,508 stocks declined, 822 advanced and 74 shares remained unchanged.

This indicated that the market breadth was in favour of negative.

Meanwhile, 12 stocks hit their one-year highs in the early trade, while 15 stocks touched their 52-week lows.

Further, 23 stocks hit their upper circuits while 21 hit their lower circuits.

India VIX, the volatility gauge, was trading 2.4% higher at 17.79 levels.

During the early trades, Nifty Midcap 100 fell 0.02% to the 54,577.15 level, while Nifty Smallcap 100 was down 0.54% to the 16,647.95 mark.

Bajaj Finserv and Bajaj Finance were the biggest laggards on the NIFTY50 index, declining 6.59% and 5.7%, respectively. Trent (-3.88%), Tata Motors (-2.53%) and IndusInd Bank (-2.33%) were the other top losing stocks.

Power Grid (1.34%), HDFC Life Insurance (1.04%), Dr Reddy’s (0.96%), Hindustan Unilever (0.85%) and Cipla (0.84%) were the most gaining stocks on the 50-share index.

At 9:50AM, Bajaj Finserv was trading at ₹1,937.90 apiece, tanking 6.24% on NSE.

Bajaj Finserv Ltd (BFL) on Tuesday reported a 14% increase in its consolidated net profit to ₹2,417 crore in the fourth quarter ended March 2025. The company had posted a net profit of ₹2,119 crore during the corresponding January-March period of the previous fiscal.

The total consolidated income during the March 2025 quarter rose to ₹35,596 crore against ₹32,042 crore in the corresponding period of the previous financial year, BFL, the holding company for the various financial services businesses under the Bajaj group, said in a regulatory filing.

The board recommended a dividend of ₹1 per share, or 100% on the face value of ₹1.

Kathpalia resigned from his post with immediate effect following the derivatives accounting discrepancies matter that was first reported in March this year. The financial implication of the accounting lapses is ₹1,960 crore to the bank.

At 9:50 AM, shares of Trent were down 3.9% at ₹5,181 apiece on NSE.

Tata Group retail firm Trent Ltd on Tuesday reported a 56.24 per cent decline in consolidated net profit to ₹311.60 crore for the March quarter, on account of exceptional gains in the previous corresponding quarter.

The company had posted a consolidated net profit of ₹712.09 crore in the January-March quarter a year ago, according to a regulatory filing from Trent Ltd, which operates retail stores under the brand names Westside, Zudio, and Star.