Indian stock markets ended Thursday's trading with gains amid mixed trends in other Asian markets and cautious trading on European stock exchanges ahead of the crucial European Central Bank (ECB) meeting later during the day. ICICI Bank gained sharply, while Endurance Technologies lost.
ICICI Bank shares rose 4.72 percent to close at Rs 277.50 apiece, close to their 52-week high of Rs 289.70, while Endurance Technologies, which listed at 21 percent premium on Wednesday, ended with a loss of 5.16 percent at Rs 614.30.
The BSE Sensex closed 145 points higher at 28,129, while the NSE Nifty gained 40 points to end at 8,699.
The rally on the 30-scrip benchmark index was led by Adani Ports, ICICI Bank and State Bank of India that gained in the range of 5 to 2 percent.
Select stocks such as Radico Khaitan, Raymond, Tata Steel, GSFC, Edelweiss, LIC Housing Finance and Godrej Industries hit new 52-week high during the day, apparently on value buying.
Ashok Leyland gained 1.72 percent on announcing that it has won an order worth $170 million to supply vehicles and other equipment to the Tanzanian government.
Reliance Industries Limited (RIL), which is expected to declare its second quarter results later in the day, closed almost flat at Rs 1,088.50.
Private sector lender Yes Bank gained 1.31 percent to close at Rs 1,308.80 after reporting 31 percent rise in net profit to Rs 801 crore for the second quarter ended September 30, 2016. Net interest income grew 30 percent to Rs 1,446 crore from Rs 1,108 crore in the corresponding period last fiscal, according to a regulatory filings with the BSE.
Gross and net NPAs stood at 0.83 percent and 0.29 percent, respectively.
Other companies that declared September quarter results included Quess Corp, which ended with a gain of 6 percent at Rs 632.70 on news of acquisition. The integrated business services provider on Wednesday said it had entered into a binding agreement to acquire a majority stake in Singapore's Comtel Solutions Pvt Ltd.
On Thursday, foreign institutional investors (FIIs) were net buyers of Indian equities worth Rs 7.3 crore, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs) bought Indian stocks worth Rs 582 crore on a net basis, according to the provisional data published by the National Stock Exchange (NSE).
