HUL Leads Nifty Charge on Friday; Wipro Drags as IT and Insurance Take a Hit

Mumbai, April 17: Hindustan Unilever, JSW Steel, Nestlé India, Apollo Hospitals, Power Grid, Max Healthcare, and Reliance Industries were Friday’s seven biggest gainers on the Nifty 50, closing with gains ranging from 1.61% to 4.72%. On the losing side, Wipro, HDFC Life, Sun Pharma, Bajaj Auto, and Mahindra & Mahindra ended in the red, with Wipro suffering the sharpest cut of the session.

Hindustan Unilever was the undisputed star of Friday’s session, opening at ₹2,142 and climbing to a session high of ₹2,245 before holding firm near the top to close at ₹2,240. That compared to Thursday’s closing price of ₹2,139.10, translating into a sharp gain of 4.72% — the biggest move on the Nifty for the day. The stock touched a low of ₹2,133 intraday, meaning it barely dipped from its opening before powering higher through the session.

JSW Steel had an equally directional Friday, opening at ₹1,213 and reaching a high of ₹1,242.30 while holding a low of ₹1,198.60 during the session. The stock closed at ₹1,241.60, gaining 2.2% over Thursday’s close of ₹1,214.90. With nearly 18.76 lakh shares changing hands worth over ₹230 crore, there was clear institutional interest driving the metal counter higher.

Nestlé India mirrored the 2.2% gain posted by JSW Steel, opening at ₹1,258.10 and rallying to a high of ₹1,292 before settling at ₹1,285.10. Thursday’s close had been ₹1,257.40, and the stock held a session low of ₹1,252.80, meaning buyers remained firmly in control throughout. Nearly 20 lakh shares were traded, generating over ₹255 crore in value on the exchange.

Apollo Hospitals delivered a clean breakout session on Friday, opening at ₹7,553 — exactly at Thursday’s close — and surging straight to a session high of ₹7,710, which also served as its closing price. The stock posted a 2.08% gain over Thursday’s ₹7,553 close, barely dipping to a low of ₹7,515 during the day. The ₹263 crore worth of trade in just 3.43 lakh shares underlined the conviction of buyers in the healthcare giant.

Power Grid Corporation was among the high-volume gainers of the day, with over 1.36 crore shares traded worth more than ₹430 crore. The stock opened at ₹313.30, hit a high of ₹318.95, and held a low of ₹311.40 before closing at ₹318.15 — a 1.89% rise over Thursday’s close of ₹312.25. The PSU utility counter has been on a steady climb, and Friday’s performance reinforced that momentum.

Max Healthcare added to the healthcare sector’s strong showing on Friday, opening at ₹990.65 and rising to a high of ₹1,011.40 before closing at ₹1,008. Against Thursday’s close of ₹990.65, the stock gained 1.75%, dipping to a session low of ₹983 at its weakest before buyers stepped in decisively. Over 16 lakh shares were traded, generating nearly ₹165 crore in value.

Reliance Industries rounded out the top seven gainers, opening at ₹1,340 and climbing to a session high of ₹1,368.40 before closing at ₹1,364.90 — a 1.61% advance over Thursday’s close of ₹1,343.30. The oil-to-telecom conglomerate held a low of ₹1,340 all session, barely pulling back as buyers absorbed every dip. With nearly 1.39 crore shares traded worth a massive ₹1,885 crore, Reliance was the most valuable counter on the exchange on Friday. 

Turning to the losers, Wipro was the session’s biggest casualty, shedding 2.83% to close at ₹204.30 against Thursday’s close of ₹210.26. The IT major opened at ₹205, briefly touched a high of ₹206.45, but quickly lost ground to hit a session low of ₹202.50 before recovering marginally into the close. With a staggering 8.05 crore shares traded worth over ₹1,646 crore, it was one of the most actively traded stocks on the Nifty — and the selling was relentless.

Sun Pharmaceutical slipped 1.04%, closing at ₹1,675.50 against Thursday’s ₹1,693.10. The pharma heavyweight opened at ₹1,696.90 — also its session high — and moved only southward from there, touching a low of ₹1,670.50 before settling near the bottom of its range. Nearly 31.5 lakh shares worth over ₹528 crore were traded, making it a heavily watched decliner in an otherwise broadly positive market.

Bajaj Auto lost 0.76%, ending Friday at ₹9,750 compared to Thursday’s close of ₹9,825. The two-wheeler major opened strongly at ₹9,810, briefly touched a high of ₹9,830, but could not hold those levels and drifted to a session low of ₹9,722 before a partial recovery into close. Only 2.64 lakh shares worth ₹258 crore were traded, pointing to low liquidity but clear directional selling pressure on the counter.

HDFC Life Insurance was the second-biggest loser, falling 2.41% to close at ₹616.25 from Thursday’s close of ₹631.50. The stock opened at ₹618.95, briefly pushed to a high of ₹625, but spent most of the session under pressure, hitting a low of ₹606.20 before recovering slightly into the close. Over 81 lakh shares worth ₹500 crore changed hands, reflecting significant institutional activity on both sides of the trade.

Mahindra & Mahindra closed the week on a soft note, falling 0.63% to ₹3,202 from its Thursday close of ₹3,222.30. The automaker opened at ₹3,210, touched a high of ₹3,242.50, but could not sustain the early optimism and slid to a low of ₹3,185 before settling at ₹3,202. With 21.8 lakh shares worth nearly ₹700 crore traded, M&M’s modest decline still stood out on a day when most of the broader market finished firmly in the green.

Source:

• https://www.nseindia.com/market-data/top-gainers-losers