IT, Healthcare and Cement Stocks Lead Nifty Rally on Friday Afternoon

Mumbai, July 3: Information technology, healthcare and cement stocks were the biggest draws on Dalal Street on Friday as counters across the three sectors climbed between 1% and 6% and lifted their respective Nifty sectoral gauges well ahead of the broader market. 

While the broader Nifty 50 itself rose by a modest 0.75%, the trio led gains with large- as well as mid-cap names within each space participating in the up-move through the session. Buying in IT stocks, for instance, extended Thursday’s outperformance with the Nifty IT index rising 2.25%, the best performance among all sectoral gauges. 

Dealers attributed buying to a favourable dollar-rupee move as well as continued optimism around a recovery in discretionary tech spending, aided further by a strong showing on the Nasdaq earlier in the week that improved sentiments for export-oriented IT stocks. 

• HCL Technologies (HCLTECH) led the charge, zooming up as much as 6.3% to its last traded price of Rs 1,146 from a previous close of Rs 1,078.10. The HCL Technologies price jump made it the single biggest gainer across the Nifty universe on Friday. 

• Tech Mahindra (TECHM) gained 3.17% to Rs 1,429.20 against its previous close of Rs 1,421.30. 

• Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) advanced 1.71% to Rs 2,103.40 from Rs 2,068.10. 

• Wipro (WIPRO) added 1.08% to Rs 175.88 versus its previous close of Rs 174. This completed the broad-based rally across the space’s largest names. 

Healthcare and pharma stocks were the second big winner with the Nifty Healthcare index rising 2%, while the Nifty Pharma index added 1.92% as investors rotated into the defensive space on hopes of steady export demand and increase in hospital footfalls during the ongoing earnings season. 

The space also witnessed safe-haven buying with investors preferring largely domestic-facing healthcare stocks over export-heavy sectors amid continued uncertainty around Middle East tensions. 

• Max Healthcare (MAXHEALTH) gained 2.85% to Rs 1,157.50 from Rs 1,127.40. This made it the second- best performer in the Nifty gainers list. 

• Dr Reddy’s Laboratories (DRREDDY) jumped 2.3% to Rs 1,376.70 from Rs 1,345.70. 

• Sun Pharmaceutical Industries (SUNPHARMA) climbed 2.22% to Rs 1,912.60 against its previous close of Rs 1,871. 

• Apollo Hospitals Enterprise (APOLLOHOSP) gained 2.11% to Rs 8,879.50 from Rs 8,696. Both hospital and pharma stocks shared the limelight through the session. 

Cement stocks rounded off the day’s leader-board with the Nifty Cement index climbing 1.18% to 15,346.15, adding to its 30-day gain of over 5%. Dealers said anticipation around a pickup in construction and infrastructure demand once monsoon season winds down coupled with stable input costs and softening fuel prices supported margins across the sector. 

• Orient Cement (ORIENTCEM) was the standout performer, surging 3.04% to Rs 140.57 from a previous close of Rs 136.42. 

• Ambuja Cements (AMBUJACEM) and ACC (ACC) were next with both cement stocks climbing by 2.17%. Ambuja shares rose to Rs 438.25 from Rs 428.95, while ACC advanced to Rs 1,380 from Rs 1,350.70. 

• Shree Cement (SHREECEM) added 1.72% to Rs 26,670 against its previous close of Rs 26,220. 

• Nuvoco Vistas (NUVOCO) gained 1.55% to Rs 320.70 from Rs 315.80. 

• UltraTech Cement (ULTRACEMCO) rose 1.18% to Rs 11,672 from Rs 11,536. 

Not all cement stocks joined the party however, with Birla Corporation (BIRLACORPN) closing marginally in the red, down by 0.06% to Rs 980.70 from Rs 981.30. 

Taken together, strength across these three sectors highlighted a stock-specific theme-driven rally instead of one led by broader market participation. Traders will now keep a lookout for follow-through buying into the latter-half of the session with sustainability of gains, particularly in IT and cement, seen as a key swing factor for the benchmarks heading into the weekend. 

Source

• https://www.nseindia.com/market-data/live-market-indices