Nifty hovers around 22,000 in early trade, Sensex falls over 60 pts

Nifty traded at 22,031.50, down by 9.20 pts or 0.04 per cent as of 9.52 am on Monday and Sensex traded at 72,362.10, down by 64.54 or 0.09 per cent.

Commenting on the nifty outlook, Geojit Financial Services Chief Market Strategist, Anand James, said, “Friday’s wobbliness suggests that the rejection trades usually seen on approach to the previous peak have been accounted for, probably clearing the path for a smooth sail to 22,450-550 initially, with a minor resistance spotted near 22,175-22,250. Downside markers shall remain at 21,835, the closest congestion point of note, but 22,000 could serve the purpose for the day equally well.”

• Also read: Sensex, Nifty likely to see flat opening

Dr V K Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Financial Services, said, “An important takeaway from the Q3 results is the improving profitability of India Inc. EBITDA and profit after tax are growing impressively even while sales growth is average. Automobiles, pharmaceuticals and capital goods are doing very well. In banking, there is impressive credit growth and improving profitability. PSU banks are outperforming private sector banks due to low valuations which continue to be fair even after the run-up in prices.”

“Investors should be careful while chasing many mid and small caps which are rising sharply without fundamental justification. Many of these stocks have very low floating stock and, therefore, can easily be manipulated by a cartel of operators. In the long run, only stocks with strong fundamentals will give steady and good returns,” Vijayakumar added.

• Also read: Global trends to guide stock markets this week: Analysts

Sectoral indices, except Nifty PSU Bank, realty, and IT stocks, traded in green. On the NSE, Bajaj Auto, Dr Reddy Laboratories, Bharti Airtel, Coal India, and Bajaj Finance were top gainers on the NSE, while Wipro, TCS, LTIMindtree, Tech Mahindra and L&T were top laggards.