The Close

The Long Desk

The Close · The Open · The Long Desk · Archive · Research · Top Stocks
Thu, 24 Sep 2026
1428 companies · 1449 sector slots · 21 sectors · 21 below Rs1000cr and not scanned · long-term lens

Trend Spotlight

Fed's first hike since 2023 and an Iran-linked crude spike push USD/INR to a fresh weak level near 95.98, extending a 10th straight monthly CPI rise

The FOMC raised the fed funds range 25bps to 3.75%-4.00% on September 16, with 16 of 18 policymakers seeing at least one more hike by year-end. Combined with crude extending gains above $92-94/bbl on US-Iran negotiation uncertainty, the rupee pushed to a fresh low near 95.98/USD on September 24, and August CPI rose to 4.82% -- a 10th consecutive monthly increase -- largely on the same energy and currency pass-through. For a long-term holder this is a macro backdrop worth tracking (import costs, the RBI's inflation-growth balancing act) rather than a single stock-moving event.

Market Overview

IndexClosePoints ChangeP/EP/B
Nifty 50 23,063.10 ▼ -383.70 ▼ -1.64% 19.50 2.79
Nifty Next 50 71,381.45 ▼ -1,080.95 ▼ -1.49% 18.87 3.17
Nifty 500 22,552.60 ▼ -382.50 ▼ -1.67% 21.85 3.12
Nifty Bank 55,438.50 ▼ -1,110.40 ▼ -1.96% 13.12 1.66
NIFTY Midcap 100 60,990.15 ▼ -1,406.30 ▼ -2.25% 29.40 4.14
▲ 502 advancing ■ 21 unchanged ▼ 2139 declining of 2662 equities, vs the 2026-09-23 close

FII/DII cash flows have not published for this session yet — NSE releases them later in the evening, after this report goes out. They appear in tomorrow morning's Open. No figure is shown here rather than the previous session's.

FII / FPI DII
FII / DII daily net cash flow · ₹ crore · scroll to zoom, drag to pan

Source: NSE ind_close_all_20260924 (levels, index P/E and P/B) and the full-market bhavcopy (breadth).

Index P/E from NSE's official daily index file.

Sector performance

This session's index move, next to the desk's standing stance. The stance is a valuation-and-quality reading over years — it does not move because an index had a good day. Sectors with no listed NSE index show — for the session columns; the stance still applies.

SectorIndexSession Idx P/EStance
Information Technology Nifty IT · 17 researched 28,208.85 ▼ -0.44% 18.0 WATCH
Pharmaceuticals Nifty Pharma · 19 researched 27,028.70 ▼ -0.45% 41.9 AVOID
Healthcare & Hospitals Nifty Healthcare Index · 6 researched 16,757.20 ▼ -0.66% 43.9 WATCH
Energy & Power Nifty Energy · 17 researched 37,360.95 ▼ -1.06% 14.5 WATCH
FMCG Nifty FMCG · 6 researched 45,759.35 ▼ -1.08% 31.8 WATCH
Realty Nifty Realty · 5 researched 861.40 ▼ -1.10% 36.6 WATCH
Hospitality & Tourism Nifty India Tourism · 8 researched 7,780.40 ▼ -1.47% 87.8 WATCH
Automobiles Nifty Auto · 34 researched 26,730.10 ▼ -1.57% 31.1 WATCH
Metals & Mining Nifty Metal · 16 researched 13,041.95 ▼ -1.96% 15.9 WATCH
Banks Nifty Bank · 12 researched 55,438.50 ▼ -1.96% 13.1 WATCH
Financial Services Nifty Financial Services · 10 researched 24,954.15 ▼ -2.39% 15.3 WATCH
Capital Goods no listed index · 15 researched WATCH
Chemicals no listed index · 6 researched WATCH
Commercial Services no listed index · 6 researched WATCH
Construction & Materials no listed index · 9 researched WATCH
Diversified & Other no listed index · 1 researched WATCH
Logistics & Transport no listed index · 5 researched WATCH
Packaging & Plastics no listed index · 2 researched WATCH
Retail & Consumer no listed index · 3 researched WATCH
Telecom & Media no listed index · 5 researched WATCH
Textiles & Apparel no listed index · 5 researched WATCH

Movers in the universe

Largest moves among the 1423 tracked names this session, against the 2026-09-23 close.

CompanyCallPrev CloseMove
India Glycols Ltd INDIAGLYCO AVOID ₹257.70 ₹306.00 ▲ +18.74%
Kaveri Seed Company Ltd KSCL HOLD ₹710.70 ₹783.85 ▲ +10.29%
Kabra Extrusion Technik Ltd KABRAEXTRU AVOID ₹732.85 ₹806.10 ▲ +10.00%
Sedemac Mechatronics Ltd SEDEMAC QUALITY-WAIT ₹3,035.20 ₹3,313.60 ▲ +9.17%
Vikran Engineering Ltd VIKRAN AVOID ₹56.14 ₹60.99 ▲ +8.64%
Max Financial Services Ltd MFSL AVOID ₹1,562.90 ₹1,410.00 ▼ -9.78%
L&T Finance Ltd LTF AVOID ₹310.00 ₹282.00 ▼ -9.03%
Hikal Ltd HIKAL AVOID ₹232.43 ₹214.15 ▼ -7.86%
NOCIL Ltd NOCIL HOLD ₹206.30 ₹191.40 ▼ -7.22%
HDFC Life Insurance Company Ltd HDFCLIFE AVOID ₹561.50 ₹526.90 ▼ -6.16%

Set aside as undetermined: TURTLEMINT (▼ -20.00%), POLICYBZR (▼ -36.00%). A move this large over one session is usually a bonus, split or demerger rather than a price change, and a close-only series cannot tell the two apart — so it is neither listed as a mover nor quietly dropped.

Calls this session

A change to anything but AVOID publishes only after two consecutive sessions say the same thing; AVOID publishes at once.

Sector stance changed (3)

Published this session (3)

new
unconfirmed: sector, news
Unconfirmed: sector, news not checked — Weighted average rating 3.82/5 including quality and value — the rare combination.
new
unconfirmed: news
Unconfirmed: news not checked — Weighted average rating 4.18/5 including quality and value — the rare combination.
new
Good business, bad price today (Value 2/5) — PEG n/a; P/E cheaper than 49% of sector peers (P/E 41.02); EV/EBITDA 31.2, B/M 0.126. Watch for a better entry.

Awaiting a second session (12)

TickerClosePublished PendingNote
DCBBANK ₹213.35 HOLD BUY if next session holds
FINEORG ₹5,062.50 QUALITY-WAIT HOLD if next session holds
FOSECOIND ₹6,477.00 QUALITY-WAIT HOLD if next session holds
GEOJITFSL ₹79.17 AVOID HOLD if next session holds
INDIAGLYCO ₹306.00 AVOID HOLD if next session holds
JKCEMENT ₹5,184.50 HOLD QUALITY-WAIT if next session holds
KIRLPNU ₹697.75 QUALITY-WAIT BUY if next session holds
MATRIMONY ₹538.55 QUALITY-WAIT HOLD if next session holds
NEPHROPLUS ₹709.50 QUALITY-WAIT HOLD if next session holds
RATNAVEER ₹323.95 AVOID HOLD if next session holds
SHILPAMED ₹1,007.30 QUALITY-WAIT HOLD if next session holds
SUNFLAG ₹396.80 HOLD QUALITY-WAIT if next session holds

Top Stories

TCS's $9.5B TCV beat and September deal wins bolster the pending HOLD->BUY call Information Technology

TCS reported total contract value of $9.5 billion versus $8.5 billion expected, alongside a string of September deal wins -- a marquee AI-led transformation deal with SKF, modernization work for the Dubai Gold & Commodities Exchange, an AI deal with Germany's Aareal Bank, and continued scaling of its AI business to a $2.6bn annualized run rate. Sell-side coverage remains split: Antique and 360 ONE hold HOLD ratings while Nuvama, Anand Rathi and Centrum maintain BUY, so this reinforces rather than settles the pending call flip.

TCS

GST reform lifts retail volumes into the festive season, while DOMS's guided margin trough plays out as expected Retail & Consumer

September 22's GST reform is reported to be boosting household essentials and grocery sales volumes ahead of the festive season, a broad positive for the RETAIL sector's WATCH stance. Separately, DOMS Industries' Q1 FY27 results confirmed the previously flagged EBITDA margin collapse to 12.3% from 17.6%, with management saying a 4-5 percentage point gap to the guided 16-17% FY28 margin still requires further price hikes not yet taken -- the trough is playing out as claimed, not worsening, but normalization remains unproven.

DOMS

Jamna Auto and Sundaram Clayton governance flags confirmed, with no escalation or resolution either way Automobiles

Regulatory disclosures confirm both Jamna Auto promoters -- Pradeep Singh Jauhar and Randeep Singh Jauhar -- sold comparable stakes via same-day block deals on September 11 with no disclosed benign reason found. Separately, Sundaram Clayton's July 28 AGM confirmed 57.18% of institutional votes went against the five-year statutory auditor reappointment (the resolution still passed on promoter/retail support). Both stories restate figures already on the ledger; neither has escalated or resolved since.

JAMNAAUTO · SUNCLAY

RPEL's new patents and investor roadshow add to a strong FY26 print, supporting the pending QUALITY-WAIT->HOLD flip Capital Goods

Raghav Productivity Enhancers was granted two new patents (quartz processing and ramming mass production) on September 14 and held a Mumbai investor roadshow September 10-12, alongside FY26 revenue up 28.8% and earnings up 48.2% YoY; the stock hit an all-time high on August 31. No comparable news was found for Grindwell Norton, the sector's other pending-flip name.

RPEL

RBI holds repo at 5.25% for a third straight review as Q1 FY27 GDP growth beats estimates at 7.8%

The RBI's Monetary Policy Committee kept the repo rate unchanged at 5.25% with a neutral stance at its August review, balancing the inflation uptick against a strong growth print. India's Q1 FY27 GDP grew 7.8% YoY, beating the RBI's own 7% projection, led by services (+10.0%) and a pickup in investment (GFCF +11.9%).

Sector Scorecard

Entry score is 40% cheap-vs-history + 25% quality trend + 20% news catalyst + 15% technicals, for the 4 sectors with a researched catalyst. The other 17 show : no catalyst was researched for them, so their score renormalises over the remaining three inputs rather than assuming a neutral headline. ≥62 accumulate · 45–61 watch · <45 avoid.

SectorStanceEntryCheap QualityTechNews IndexIdx P/EB/W/H/A
Information Technology 75 scanned · 17 researched WATCH 59.4 62.4 78.5 32.4 +0 ▼ -0.44% 18.0 4/9/54/8
Banks 40 scanned · 12 researched WATCH 45.1 34.1 52.3 62.7 ▼ -1.96% 13.1 0/0/30/10
Pharmaceuticals 85 scanned · 19 researched AVOID 44.2 18.0 72.0 67.8 ▼ -0.45% 41.9 0/20/54/11
Automobiles 109 scanned · 34 researched WATCH 49.7 25.5 78.6 65.4 +0 ▼ -1.57% 31.1 0/21/77/11
FMCG 104 scanned · 6 researched WATCH 57.1 53.5 68.9 46.9 ▼ -1.08% 31.8 4/19/63/18
Metals & Mining 83 scanned · 16 researched WATCH 49.5 32.5 67.9 64.4 ▼ -1.96% 15.9 0/10/53/20
Realty 39 scanned · 5 researched WATCH 54.8 56.7 52.0 54.2 ▼ -1.10% 36.6 1/2/15/21
Energy & Power 83 scanned · 17 researched WATCH 56.5 50.0 63.4 62.6 ▼ -1.06% 14.5 5/7/39/32
Financial Services 148 scanned · 5 ranked elsewhere · 10 researched WATCH 53.6 59.1 43.6 55.5 ▼ -2.39% 15.3 4/4/87/53
Healthcare & Hospitals 58 scanned · 16 ranked elsewhere · 6 researched WATCH 46.9 23.1 73.8 65.4 ▼ -0.66% 43.9 4/16/33/5
Hospitality & Tourism 37 scanned · 8 researched WATCH 61.7 61.3 68.6 51.4 ▼ -1.47% 87.8 0/6/21/10
Chemicals 98 scanned · 6 researched WATCH 58.9 52.5 68.5 59.9 2/12/61/23
Construction & Materials 123 scanned · 9 researched WATCH 61.4 68.8 61.8 41.2 3/11/69/40
Capital Goods 102 scanned · 15 researched WATCH 52.3 31.8 78.8 64.9 +0 9/13/66/14
Textiles & Apparel 47 scanned · 5 researched WATCH 56.3 50.0 62.6 62.6 2/6/27/12
Retail & Consumer 67 scanned · 3 researched WATCH 57.9 57.0 68.4 52.2 +0 2/10/36/19
Packaging & Plastics 34 scanned · 2 researched WATCH 52.0 36.8 64.7 71.5 2/4/20/8
Logistics & Transport 25 scanned · 5 researched WATCH 45.8 28.8 67.6 54.8 6/3/10/6
Telecom & Media 29 scanned · 5 researched WATCH 52.8 50.0 60.2 48.0 3/1/14/11
Commercial Services 31 scanned · 6 researched WATCH 58.7 61.5 52.8 61.0 2/2/14/13
Diversified & Other 32 scanned · 1 researched WATCH 45.8 29.6 59.7 65.6 0/3/18/11

Source: data/verdicts.json × NSE sector index closes.

Stocks to Watch

Split evenly across large/mid/small/micro cap so this list isn't one tier's picks — new calls first, then the highest long-term composites within each. Micro-cap names are boxed and flagged Highly Volatile — worth watching, not a call to buy — since their price swings run about twice every other tier's. Each card shows the figures that selected it — open the desk for the full six-lens panel.

new call this session
unconfirmed: news
P/E in the 2th percentile of its own 3-year range · ROCE 63.0% (up 14.0pt over 5y) · -37.2% off its 52-week high
Composite 74.0 Mkt Cap 754,928 cr · Large P/E 14.09 ROCE 63.0% Piotroski 6/9
new call this session
P/E in the 27th percentile of its own 3-year range
Composite 51.2 Mkt Cap 369,284 cr · Large P/E 13.3 ROCE 6.24% Piotroski 1/7
new call this session
P/E in the 8th percentile of its own 3-year range · ROCE 20.7% (up 31.7pt over 5y) · -26.4% off its 52-week high
Composite 86.6 Mkt Cap 18,542 cr · Mid P/E 25.54 ROCE 20.7% Piotroski 5/9
new call this session
P/E in the 1th percentile of its own 3-year range · Piotroski 7/9 · -37.4% off its 52-week high
Composite 82.7 Mkt Cap 36,908 cr · Mid P/E 26.66 ROCE 46.1% Piotroski 7/9
new call this session
P/E in the 0th percentile of its own 3-year range · ROCE 29.3% (up 18.3pt over 5y) · Piotroski 8/9
Composite 86.7 Mkt Cap 9,205 cr · Small P/E 13.02 ROCE 29.3% Piotroski 8/9
new call this session
P/E in the 96th percentile of its own 3-year range · Piotroski 7/9
Composite 65.2 Mkt Cap 7,802 cr · Small P/E 124.37 ROCE 30.3% Piotroski 7/9
new call this session
Highly Volatile
P/E in the 97th percentile of its own 3-year range
Composite 52.0 Mkt Cap 4,797 cr · Micro P/E 41.02 ROCE 25.7% Piotroski 4/9
new call this session
Highly Volatile
P/E in the 46th percentile of its own 3-year range · -25.4% off its 52-week high
Composite 49.3 Mkt Cap 2,860 cr · Micro P/E 16.98 ROCE 5.92% Piotroski 4/7

How We Evaluate

MetricWhy it is in the frameworkSource
Return on capital, level and trendDurable high ROCE predicts future returns; the trend separates a moat from a good year Novy-Marx 2013 JFE
Gross profitability (GP/assets)As predictive as book-to-market, and less prone to the value trap Novy-Marx 2013 JFE
Piotroski F-scoreA nine-signal accounting checklist that separates real improvers from statistically cheap traps Piotroski 2000 JAR
Cash-flow-to-net-profitAccrual-heavy profit reverts; cash-backed profit persists Sloan 1996 TAR
P/E versus the stock's own historyCheap relative to itself, not to a peer set that may be expensive as a whole Basu 1977 JF
Book-to-marketThe value premium, in its original form Fama–French 1992 JF
EV/EBITDACapital-structure-neutral, so it compares a leveraged firm to an unleveraged one Practitioner standard
Altman Z and interest coverageDistressed firms have delivered lower, not higher, returns — screen them out rather than chase them Altman 1968 JF; Campbell/Hilscher/Szilagyi 2008 JF
52-week-high proximity, 200-DMANearness to the high has predicted continuation — but momentum crashes, so never alone George & Hwang 2004 JF; Daniel & Moskowitz 2016 JFE
Promoter pledgePledged promoter holding is a governance red flag ahead of a forced sale Not currently available from either source — no penalty is applied

Full derivation in METHODOLOGY.md.