The European Central Bank cannot commit to a pre-set number of interest rate cuts even after it starts reducing borrowing costs as the pace of cuts will depend on incoming data, ECB President Christine Lagarde said on Wednesday.

China's Tencent Holdings posted a weaker-than-expected 7% rise in fourth-quarter revenue on Wednesday as its gaming revenue shrank, and said it was expecting to at least double its share buybacks this year.

Mid and smallcap stocks have been under scanner for some time after Sebi raised concerns over froth building in the broader markets. Domestic brokerage Prabhudas Lilladher has listed 5 stock picks from the segment to steer the market due to the recent sell-off. Take a look:

In the BSE 500 sample, 66% stocks currently trade above their five-year average price-earnings (P/E) multiples and 60% have P/Es that are above the three-year average multiples. A P/E multiple is calculated by dividing the share price of a company by its EPS. When compared with the historical data, the P/E multiple offers insights on relative valuation of the stock.

Long unwinding refers to selling of positions or stocks owned for a longer period either to book profit or to exit it in anticipation of impending bearishness. In Wednesday's trading session, five stocks witnessed a top long unwinding. Here's the list:

Nifty on Wednesday ended 22 points lower to form a Doji candle on the daily charts which indicates chances of a minor pullback rally.

Derivative data implies a muted build-up in Nifty futures, with a marginal rise in Open Interest. Option data revealed writing at the 22,000 and 22,200 strike prices, steering signs of weakness.

Short covering refers to the buying of shares in order to close an existing short position or a position that has been sold. Short covering signals a shift in view on a security from extreme bearishness to bullishness. In Wednesday's trading session, five stocks saw top short covering. Here's the list:

Assuming the existing number of equity shares of the company, around Rs 1,900 crore will be utilised from general reserves or earnings of the company. The issued bonus preference shares will be listed on both the exchanges. The scheme is subject to receipt of approval from exchanges and other relevant regulators.

In a week, where small caps were the worst performers and large investors are counting at how much losses their small cap portfolio have incurred. There are still some die hard small fans who would be looking to invest in small caps and there is nothing wrong in investing in small caps even in mayhem if one is sure of holding it for next three to five years. The only thing which needs to be ensured is that one should understand that there is a difference between a good business and a bad business even in the small , mid and large cap segment.There is a difference in absolute value of the stock and value of the company. There are some businesses which will remain small but are so niche that they will still make wealth for you if you hold them for some time. But if your definition of small cap stocks is a stock which is quoting at below Rs 20 or an X amount and the reason you want to buy that stock is because you are hoping your money will grow by ten times, then forget small, mid or large, stock market is not a place where you will make a returns, only thing you will get is unnecessary anxiety.

Calling it an equity euphoria that has gripped the domestic cyclicals such as real estate, PSUs, industrials and SMIDs (small & midcaps) — leading to a 50-100% rally — Nuvama said strong revival in profits in FY24 versus moderation in FY23 were the trigger points for the rally.

In the past 12 months, small, midcap stocks have given returns exceeding 50% compared to largecaps. The near-term correction notwithstanding, Anand Rathi Shares & Stocks shares four reasons why it sees small and midcap stocks outperforming largecaps over the next 12 months.

​The 30-share BSE benchmark Sensex rose 90 points or 0.12% to settle at 72,102 and the broader NSE Nifty gained 22 points or 0.10% to end at 21,839, led by energy stocks. From the Sensex pack, Maruti, Nestle India, Power Grid, and SBI were the top gainers, rising 2-3%. ITC, Reliance Industries, and Kotak Bank also closed higher, while Tata Steel, Tata Motors, HDFC Bank, and HUL Closed in the red.

India's most expensive stock MRF has risen by nearly 60% over the past 12 months though the rally has remained subdued in 2024 so far. In contrast, Nifty Auto has delivered superior returns at 68% in this period while broader Nifty's returns stand at 29%.

In the last one week, not even one sector has been spared by bears, they were seen across the street. It is time like this that one needs to look at the relative performance and before taking any buy or sell decision one simple question should be asked. The question is that a sector which was doing well when the news about higher GDP growth and other macro numbers were coming, has suddenly corrected, is there something changed for the sector or not. Because if some negative development has taken place in the operating matrix of the sector then it is time to sell, but if nothing wrong has happened to factors which determine the bottomline then why panic and sell. What impacts the operating matrix of the banking sector ? It is the overall economic growth. Banks provide the lifeline of capital to all the sectors which form part of any economy, whether it is retail loans or corporate loans. So when these sectors do well, banks have a higher credit growth. Is there any indication that economic growth is going to come down, not at all. So, let the trader react, not the investor.

Indian shares opened higher on Wednesday, led by a rebound in auto and energy stocks, and tracking Asian peers ahead of the US Federal Reserve's rate decision and commentary. Meanwhile, in today's trade, four stocks hit a new 52-week high. Here's a list:

If one looks at how one sector after another has been recovering, engineering which overlaps in some part with capital goods has been one of the last ones to see a recovery in real business sense. It is only in the last few months that one would these companies announce that either they have got orders or any other sort of other contracts. If one looks at the orders or contract wins, a number of them are showing quarter on quarter increase for almost the three quarters. There is a reason why these companies were last on the list to show revival. Only when the user industry which in this case ranges from chemical, and sugar railways to literally everyone else involved in manufacturing and utilities embarks upon a capacity expansion only then these engineering cum capital good companies would get orders and show an improvement. In the first phase of economic recovery, it was more of repairing both balance sheets and policy framework that took place. It is only recently that we have seen companies get confident and a new capex cycle getting started. Probably that is why some of the mid-sized players have been able to outperform even a volatile market.

"When countries manage macro badly, savers move to protect the value of their savings. Traditionally it was gold. Now bitcoin too! While I am not convinced about bitcoin, would it not be better than the Argentinian peso with 276% inflation?," Kotak said on X.

Mukherjea said City Union Bank's valuations are attractive at 1.1x FY25E P/B. Marcellus said that considering the bank’s stability and strong track record in the management team and its conservatism through multiple cycles in the past, the trend of consistent growth can continue in the future as well.

A short buildup is when there is a rise in open interest and volumes along with a decrease in the price of the underlying stock in the Futures and Options segment. Short buildup means more people are expecting the prices to go down and creating short positions. In Wednesday’s trading session, five stocks witnessed a build of fresh short positions. Here's the list:

Broader markets also felt the heat with Nifty Midcap 100 falling by 530 points on an intraday basis while the Nifty Smallcap 100 correcting by 190 points or 1.3%.

Many firms pursue the elusive "hockey stick" growth curve, putting rapid user acquisition and market share ahead of strong governance standards.

With today's gains, the rally has extended to two sessions in a row. Over 13 lakh shares were trading on the NSE around 10:15 am with the traded value standing at Rs 531.50 crore. It was also the top Nifty gainer around this time.

The stock rose from Rs 149 as on 19th December 2023 to Rs 195 as on 18th March 2024 which translates into an upside of over 30% in the last 3 months.

A long buildup is when there is a rise in open interest and volumes along with an increase in the price of the underlying stock in the Futures and Options segment. The long buildup is the occurrence of a long (buying) trend in the share market. In Thursday's trading session, five stocks witnessed a build of fresh long positions. Here's the list:

The stock hit its 5% upper circuit while witnessing a 1.47 times spurt in the volumes on India's oldest exchange.

The Federal Open Market Committee is poised to keep rates in a range of 5.25% to 5.5% at its two-day policy meeting, a two-decade high first reached in July. The rate decision and economic forecasts will be released at 2 p.m. in Washington. Chair Jerome Powell will hold a press conference 30 minutes later.

The post-Covid recovery, aided by easier availability of credit due to the dramatic acceleration in the use of UPI and ever-widening spread of social media, has surely helped smaller companies find new customers and new ways to reach existing customers.

Rajiv Batra of JPMorgan Chase & Co, says global funds’ positioning in India’s $4.3 trillion stock market remains light and investors will use any correction as an opportunity to increase holdings. His views come as overseas flows have become more volatile ahead of the national vote amid concerns over stretched valuations.

LIC terminated Yogesh Garg due to Sebi front-running ban. Garg used family demat accounts for intraday trades, profiting ₹2.44 crore. Sebi confirmed ban on Garg and four others for insider trading.

US Federal Reserve is expected to maintain the federal funds rate amid higher inflation and strong job market data. Market eagerly awaits the Fed's guidance on potential rate cuts and future policy actions.

Within the BSE Midcap universe of 127 stocks, 23 have more than doubled investor wealth. Rail PSU IRFC tops the list with 407% gain, followed by REC's 278%, SJVN 272%, BHEL 220% and PFC 209%.

Nifty fell to selling pressure and did not put up any fight. It closed with a net loss.

Happy Forgings, renowned for safety-critical components, sees a bright future with strong order wins and customer relationships. JM Financial's "buy" rating and target price of Rs 1,100 suggest significant growth potential for long-term investors."

A former student of Benjamin Graham, CEO of Berkshire Hathaway and current primary shareholder Warren Buffett is one of the most successful investors of all time. Buffett is noted as a legendary value investor, though he is also believed to incorporate an emphasis on management quality and company growth prospects. Based on the idea of Warren Buffett, a custom screen made by MarketSmith emphasizes metrics looking for companies with long-term past and potential future growth.Here are 8 stocks that match Warren Buffett’s style of investing, as listed on MarketSmith:

AVP Infracon debuts on NSE SME with 5.3% premium. It was 20 times subscribed due to non-institutional interest. The companies core competence is in construction projects.

UBS upgraded Eicher Motors to Buy with Rs 5,000 target, addressing competition concerns. Jefferies started Buy on Syrma SGS, Hold on Kaynes Technologies. Nomura has positive views on OMCs. B&K recommends Buy on Hindustan Foods for strong growth and debt reduction.

Among the Sensex stocks, Maruti, HCL Tech, Wipro and Power Grid were the top gainers, rising over 1% each in early trade. On the flip side, HUL, Bajaj Finserv, ICICI Bank, and HDFC Bank opened with cuts.

Stocks that were in focus included names like OIL, which fell 4.04%, IOC, which declined 5.25%, and BPCL, whose shares dropped 4.15% on Friday.

Tokyo's Nikkei is closed for a holiday in Japan, but the yen's weakness lifted Nikkei futures by 0.6%, a day after the Bank of Japan ended years of negative interest rates in a well-telegraphed move.

Borse Dubai had been the largest single shareholder in Nasdaq. It said it will reduce its ownership stake to 10.8% from 15.5%.

Inflation was slowing more than expected, complicating the central bank's plan to end negative interest rates by March or April and then follow quickly with further increases

Shares in Nvidia pulled out of the red to close up 1% after it revealed pricing and shipment plans for its hotly anticipated Blackwell B200 artificial intelligence chip, which it says could be 30 times faster than current chips

“BEML stock has formed Tweezer Bottom which is a Bullish Reversal formation. Traders can buy for a target of Rs 3035-3300 in the next 1-2 months,” KKunal V Parar, Vice-President of Technical Research and Algo, Choice Broking, said.

In November 2023, the regulator increased the risk weights for loans to NBFCs by 25 basis points, making bank borrowing more expensive for them. A basis point is 0.01 percentage point.

The smooth execution of such deals dispels long-held concerns about Mumbai's ability to handle mega stock trades without causing massive disruptions in prices that previously took weeks to heal.

JK Tyre fell 4.35% on Tuesday while MRF Tyres and Goodyear India declined 3.32% and 2.39% respectively. Apollo moved down 0.59% while CEAT and Bridegstone were up by 0.44% and 2.74% respectively. Benchmark Nifty slumped over 1%, while Nifty Auto Index fell 0.45%.

RBI study reveals minimal impact of post pandemic fiscal stimulus on Indian inflation compared to major economies. Empirical analysis shows positive relationship between fiscal expansion and inflation, urging fiscal consolidation in India by 2025-26.

Largecap companies outperform midcap and smallcap firms in growth and profitability, maintaining a superior operating margin. Smallcaps exhibit high net profit volatility, raising concerns about sustainability of returns.

Reliance Infrastructure and JC Flowers ARC had entered into a standstill agreement, according to notice issued to the exchanges on January 7. Initially, the standstill was until March 20, 2024, according to a separate stock exchange disclosure. "This was recently extended to March 31, 2024," said a spokesperson of Reliance Infrastructure.