FINAL TRADE: Benchmark indices settle in red; Sensex at 66,266.82; Nifty at 19,659.9

Stock market today: The domestic share market on Thursday (July 27) ended in the red but recovered from the day's low. FMGC, Auto, Financial Services, and Oil & Gas indices dragged the indices. At close, the Nifty 50 was down 118.4 points at 19,659.9, and the Sensex settled at 66,266.82, down 440.38 points. M&M ended as the top loser on the NSE after it acquired a stake in RBL Bank.

"The Nifty witnessed selling pressure throughout the day and closed in the negative, down 120 points. On the daily charts, we can observe that the Nifty has faced resistance from the 61.82 per cent Fibonacci retracement level (19,850) and started the next leg of the fall. The daily, as well as hourly momentum indicators, have a negative crossover, which is a sell signal. The daily Bollinger bands are also contracting, which points towards consolidation in the short term, and thus we change our short-term stance from positive to sideways, and the range of consolidation is likely to be 19900–19500. In terms of levels, 19550–19500 shall act as a crucial support zone, and on the upside, 19850–19900 shall act as an immediate hurdle zone," said Jatin Gedia, Technical Research Analyst at Sharekhan by BNP Paribas.

Broader market 

The Nifty Midcap 100 index edged up by 0.27 per cent whereas the Smallcap 100 ended flat.

Sectoral watch 

Nifty Bank settled 0.83 per cent lower at 45,679.30. 

"Bank Nifty also witnessed a correction from the resistance zone of 46300–46400, where the previous swing highs were placed. The daily momentum indicator has triggered a fresh negative crossover, which is a sell signal. Thus, until the bank Nifty does not manage to sustain above the 46300–46400 zone, we can expect it to slip down to 45330–45300 levels, where support in the form of the 20-day moving average is placed," said Gedia.

Barring Nifty Pharma and Healthcare index, all indices settled in negative territory.

Buzzing stocks 

Among the pharma stocks, Cipla, Divi's Laboratories, and Sun Pharma were the top gainers on the NSE, edging up by 9.78 per cent, 2.03 per cent, and 2.30 per cent respectively. REC ended over 8 per cent higher. Colgate, Birlasoft, REC, and IEX ended with higher post-results.

Conversely, Mahindra and Mahindra closed over 6 per cent lower after buying stakes in RBL Bank, and RBL Bank shares also slipped over 2 per cent. RVNL stock closed over 6 per cent lower after the government proposed to sell about a 5.36 per cent stake through an offer for sale. Intellect Design Arena slipped nearly 4 per cent after the company was requested to leave the government's eMarketplace due to a competitor offering lower pricing.

Catch the latest stock market updates here. For all other news related to business, politics, tech, sports, and auto, visit Zeebiz.com.