The stock of Dr Reddy’s Laboratories may turn weak on Friday as the company recalled 58,656 bottles of its heartburn drug Lansoprazole in the US due to microbial contamination. The USFDA (healthcare regulator in the US) has been cracking down heavily on Indian drug makers (Ranbaxy, Sun Pharma and Wockhardt) for non-compliance with good manufacturing norms. According to industry estimates, the drug had sales of approximately $115 million.
EGM to drive Raj Television
Shares of Raj Televison are likely to hog the limelight on Friday as shareholders will decide on proposals for a stock split and a bonus issue. Earlier, the board had approved splitting the face value of the company by a half (from ₹10 to ₹5) and issuing bonus shares in the ratio of 1:1. Shareholders at the EGM will also vote on the proposal to double the authorised share capital to ₹30 crore. Raj TV has witnessed a phenomenal rise on the bourses over the last few years.
Bank stocks: All eyes on WPI number
The Consumer Price Inflation cooling off to 8.1 per cent in February from 8.8 per cent in January drove banking stocks higher on Thursday. Bank Nifty closed 1 per cent higher despite the Nifty closing in the red. Participants will keenly watch the wholesale price Inflation data, expected to be out on Friday. Bank stocks could get a further boost if the WPI cools further, on expectations that RBI will cut rates in its April 1 meet. HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank and SBI could be in focus.