Closing Bell: Bank Nifty hits lifetime high; Auto, pharma, metals drag Sensex, Nifty; Hindalco, Divi’s Lab among top losers

Bears took control of the Dalal Street on Wednesday as benchmark indices managed a negative closing after a one-day break on account of Guru Nanak Jayanti holiday. Domestic equity markets pared their opening gains dragged by auto, metal and pharma stocks. BSE Sensex ended at 61,033.55, down 151.60 points or 0.25 per cent while Nifty50 closed with a loss of 45 points at 18,157. It was down by 0.25 per cent from the Monday closing level. 

Bank Nifty hit its life time high of 41,948.90. 

India VIX, a measure of volatility in the stock markets stood at 15.95, which was up 2.32 per cent. 

Also Read: Market HIGHLIGHTS: Bears rule street as Sensex, Nifty end negative on Wednesday; auto, realty, metals drag frontline indices 

In the 50-share Nifty50 index, 14 advanced and 36 declined. The biggest gainers included Coal India, ITC and Hero MotoCorp while the biggest losers were Hindalco, Power Grid and Divi's Laboratories. Meanwhile, in the 30-stock index, only 8 ended with gains against 22 losers. ITC, Indusind Bank and Kotak Mahindra Bank were the top gainers while Power Grid, Tech Mahindra and Sun Pharma were top losers. Meanwhile,  

PSU Bank stocks continued their strong momentum from Monday making Nifty PSU Bank as the clear winner in the day's trade. Apart from it, Nifty Bank and Nifty FMCG managed a green ending. The worst performers in the 15 Nifty Sectoral indices were Nifty Realty (- 1.45 per cent), Nifty Pharma (-1.13 per cent) and Nifty Healthcare Index (-1.22 per cent). 

Also Read: Divi’s Laboratories tanks 15% in 5 sessions: Buy, Sell or Hold? Check price targets

Even the broader market stocks traded lacklustre with NIFTY MIDCAP 100 closing at 31,697, declining by 0.83 per cent. Nifty Small Cap 100 settled at 9,779.95, down 0.57 per cent. 

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Out of 3,634 stocks that were trading on the BSE, advances were 1,732 while declines stood at 1,788. 114 stocks remained unchanged. 188 stocks hit their 52-week highs while 28 hit their 52-week lows. 290 stocks hit upper circuit while 145 hit 52-week lows.