The domestic equity markets have been riding rough waters lately, with investors seeing a massive erosion of wealth to the tune of Rs 78 lakh crore since the market hit its all-time high in September 2024.
Over the period, both the benchmark indices – Sensex and Nifty – fell 11.7 per cent and 12.7 per cent, respectively. Consequently, the combined market cap of all the BSE-listed companies shrunk to Rs 400.9 lakh crore from a peak of Rs 479.1 lakh crore hit on September 27, 2024.
Both the benchmark indices on Friday, February 14 registered their eighth consecutive losing streak, with Sensex closing 199.76 points, or 0.26 per cent lower at 75,939.21, and Nifty ending down by 102.15 points, or 0.44 per cent, at 22,929.25.
Amid this downturn, there were two BSE 500 stocks which bucked the trend on Friday and hit their respective 52-week highs. The S&P BSE 500, which comprises of 500 companies, represents nearly 93 per cent of the total market capitalisation of the BSE and covers all 20 major industries of the economy. Here’s a look at these two stocks and the factors behind their rally in a challenging market.
SBI Cards
Shares of SBI Cards on February 14 hit their 52-week high of Rs 872 per share on the NSE. The stock, however, closed flat with a slight negative bias at Rs 859 apiece. It has rallied 16.8 per cent in the past one month, per BSE Analytics.
The rally in SBI Cards came after global brokerage Macquarie upgraded the stock to 'outperform'.
Macquarie's analysis suggests that credit card slippages are plateauing and credit costs are expected to start falling materially in the next two quarters. Other catalysts for the company, the brokerage said, include falling interest rates, improved liquidity, and tax cuts.
For the SBI's credit card arm, another positive factor is the RBI’s increasingly relaxed approach to unsecured loans, per Macquarie's report.
Redington
Redington shares hit a 52-week high of Rs 248 apiece on the BSE on February 14 after the company made an announcement regarding the divestment by its step-down subsidiary, Arena Bilgisayar Sanayi Ve Ticaret A.S.
Arena has sold its entire stake in Paynet Ödeme Hizmetler A.Ş., a wholly-owned subsidiary, to Iyzi Payment and Electronic Money Services Inc. for $89.29 million. As a result, Paynet is no longer a subsidiary of Arena, Redington said in an exchange filing.
The company also recently announced a SAR 2 billion or Rs 4,600 crore (SAR 1 = Rs 23.11) investment plan in Saudi Arabia over the next decade.
"This spending will include a state-of-the-art HQ, a cutting-edge automated and smart distribution center and investments into building talent," the company said in a regulatory filing.
Redington has delivered a 21.3 per cent return in the past month, per BSE Analytics.
