Pfizer plunges 7% after discontinuing Corex sale; Mcap erodes by Rs. 821 cr

With the fall in share price, the total market cap of the company fell by Rs. 821.63 cr to Rs. 8,208.97 crore at 1:48 pm.

Shares of Pfizer Ltd, the Indian arm of US pharmaceutical major Pfizer Inc, crashed 7.02% to Rs. 1,792.45 on BSE after the company today announced that it has discontinued the manufacture and sales of its codeine-based cough syrup Corex, which is one of largest selling drugs in India.

With the fall in share price, the total market cap of the company fell by Rs. 821.63 cr to Rs. 8,208.97 crore at 1:48 pm.

On March 10, 2016, the government banned nearly 300 drugs in India, which are sold illegally and Corex is one of them.

According to the company’s 2014 annual report, Corex had a market share of 41% in its respective segment with a MAT Value of Rs. 315 crore. The brand had ranked 1st among 94 competitors.

The company declined to comment on queries sent by IIFL.

“We have discontinued the manufacture and sale of Corex with immediate effect. Corex has a well-established efficacy and safety profile in India for more than 30 years and Pfizer makes every effort to maintain the highest standards of regulatory and quality compliance in the manufacturing and distribution of Corex Cough Syrup,” said the company in a regulatory filing.

Corex recorded a sale of Rs. 176 crore for the nine months period ended December 31, 2015.

The scrip opened at Rs. 1890 and has touched a high and low of Rs. 1890 and Rs. 1787 respectively. So far 110125(NSE+BSE) shares were traded on the counter. The current market cap of the company is Rs. 8819.48 crore.

The BSE group 'A' stock of face value Rs. 10 has touched a 52 week high of Rs. 2724 on 22-Sep-2015 and a 52 week low of Rs. 1715 on 29-Feb-2016. Last one week high and low of the scrip stood at Rs. 1945 and Rs. 1880 respectively.

The promoters holding in the company stood at 63.92 % while Institutions and Non-Institutions held 12.86 % and 23.22 % respectively.

The stock is currently trading above its 200 DMA. 

Suven Life Sciences secures 3 product patents in China, Eurasia and Hong Kong

Suven has a total of twenty granted patents from China, sixteen granted product patents from Eurasia and nineteen granted product patents from Hong Kong. 

Suven Life Sciences Ltd announces today that the grant of one product patent from China (CN103380131), one product patent from Eurasia (9 Countries) (22043) and one product patent from Hong Kong (HK 1180955) corresponding to the New Chemical Entities (NCEs) for the treatment of disorders associated with Neurodegenerative diseases and these Patents
are valid through 2032.

The granted claims of the patents include the class of selective 5-HT4 compounds and are being developed as therapeutic agents and are useful in the treatment of cognitive impairment associated with neurodegenerative disorders like Alzheimer’s disease, Attention deficient hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), Huntington’s disease, Parkinson and Schizophrenia.

With these new patents, Suven has a total of twenty granted patents from China, sixteen granted product patents from Eurasia and nineteen granted product patents from Hong Kong. These granted patents are exclusive intellectual property of Suven and are achieved through the internal discovery research efforts. Products out of these inventions may be out-licensed at various phases of clinical development like at Phase-I or Phase-II.

“We are very pleased by the grant of these patents to Suven for our pipeline of molecules in CNS arena that are being developed for cognitive disorders with high unmet medical need with huge market potential globally” says Venkat Jasti, CEO of Suven. 

Dividend delight! Around 30 companies boards to meet today to discuss dividends

Check out the latest stock which get dividend today. Aarti Industries has informed BSE that a meeting of the Board of Directors of the Company will be held on March 14, 2016, inter alia, to consider declaration of 3rd Interim Dividend, if any

Aarti Industries Ltd has informed BSE that a meeting of the Board of Directors of the Company will be held on March 14, 2016, inter alia, to consider declaration of 3rd Interim Dividend, if any.

Allcargo Logistics Ltd has informed BSE that a meeting of the Board of Directors of the Company will be held on March 14, 2016, inter alia, to consider and declare 2nd Interim Dividend for the financial year 2015-16.

Brigade Enterprises Ltd has informed BSE that a meeting of the Board of Directors of the Company will be held on March 14, 2016, inter-alia, to consider declaration of Interim Dividend, if any, for the financial year 2015-16.

Celestial Biolabs Ltd to allot 19,28,000 equity shares of Rs.10/- each (upon conversion of 19,28,000 warrants which were issued in the AGM held on November 15, 2014) on preferential basis to non promoter group.

Kalpataru Power Transmission Ltd has informed BSE that a meeting of the Board of Directors of the Company will be held on March 14, 2016, inter alia, to consider and declare Interim Dividend.

Karur Vysya Bank Ltd has informed BSE that a meeting of the Board of Directors of the Bank will be held on March 14, 2016, to consider and declare Interim Dividend, if any, on the equity shares of the Bank for the financial year 2015-16.

KEC International Ltd has informed BSE that a meeting of Board of Directors of the Company will be held on March 14, 2016, inter alia, to consider and approve payment of interim dividend on the equity share capital of the Company for the financial year ending on March 31, 2016.

Mayur Uniquoters Ltd has informed BSE that a meeting of the Board of Directors of the Company will be held on March 14, 2016, inter alia, to declare the fourth interim dividend on the equity shares of the Company for the financial year 2015-16, if any.

PI Industries Ltd has informed BSE that the Company has fixed March 23, 2016 as the Record Date for the purpose of Payment of Second Interim Dividend, subject to approval of the board in its meeting scheduled to be held on March 14, 2016.

Rama Steel Tubes Ltd has informed BSE that the Company has fixed March 15, 2016 as the record date for the purpose of ascertaining the eligibility of shareholders entitled for: 1. Sub-division of One (1) Equity Share of face value of Rs. 10 each fully paid up into Two (2) equity shares of Rs. 5/- each fully paid-up. 2. Receiving the Bonus Shares of the Company in the ratio of 4:1 (i.e. 4 bonus equity shares of Rs. 5/- each for every 1 existing equity share of Rs. 5/- each held).

Rasi Electrodesto consider issue of bonus share.

Sun TV Network Ltd has informed BSE that March 22, 2016 shall be the Record Date for the Interim Dividend if any, declared at the Board Meeting to be held on March 14, 2016. The Payment Date for the Interim Dividend if any, declared shall commence on and from March 28, 2016.

Vinati Organics Ltd has informed BSE that a meeting of the Board of Directors of the Company will be held on March 14, 2016, to consider the declaration of Interim Dividend for the financial year 2015-16.

Zensar Technologies Ltd has informed BSE that a meeting of the Board of Directors of the Company will be held on March 14, 2016, to consider and approve, inter-alia, a proposal for payment of 2nd Interim Dividend for the Financial Year 2015-16. 

SBI puts on block three loans worth Rs. 20,769 cr

SBI has invited expression of interest (EoI) from interested investors to acquire 51 per cent stake and management control of these three companies, says the financial newspaper 

In the last fortnight, State Bank of India (SBI), on behalf of itself and other consortium lenders, has put three large loans aggregating to INR 20,769 crore on the block, reports a business daily.

SBI has invited expression of interest (EoI) from interested investors to acquire 51 per cent stake and management control of these three companies, says the financial newspaper.

The companies are: a public listed EPC company (banks’ loan exposure: INR 6,897 crore); a company operating a 540 MW coal-based power project in Jharkhand (INR 2,465 crore); and a public listed 2.51 MTPA integrated steel plant in Jharkhand (INR 11,407 crore).

The move comes in the backdrop of the RBI setting a March 2017 deadline for the clean-up of bad loans in the country's banking system, reports the paper.

Credit rating agency CRISIL recently cautioned that the asset quality problems being faced by public sector banks (PSBs) will continue through most of FY17. 

The resultant impact on profitability and capitalisation of the PSBs can further dent their credit profiles over the medium term, says CRISIL.

Significant stress in the corporate loan book of PSBs is expected to result in their weak assets jumping to INR 7.1 lakh crore by March 31, 2017 (11.3 per cent of total loan book) from ~INR 4 lakh crore as on March 31, 2015 (7.2 per cent of loan book), according to CRISIL.

Sebi bars wilful defaulters from raising public funds

Report says that Sebi has also decided to bar such defaulters from setting up market intermediaries such as mutual funds. 

Sebi decided to bar wilful defaulters from raising public funds through stocks and bonds, according to reports.

Report says that Sebi has also decided to bar such defaulters from setting up market intermediaries such as mutual funds.

These defaulters would also be not allowed to take control of any other listed company, says report.

The move comes in the wake of a raging controversy over UB Group Chairman Vijay Mallya, who has exited the country

Top 18 stocks in focus today: SBI, Tata Motors, SpiceJet

SpiceJet: Kalanithi Maran, the former promoter of SpiceJet has moved the Delhi High Court, alleging that the current management was not issuing his two entities 189 million convertible warrants, reports a business daily.

SBI: In the last fortnight, State Bank of India, on behalf of itself and other consortium lenders, has put three large loans aggregating to INR 20,769 crore on the block, reports a business daily.

Tata Motors: Tata Motors Group global wholesales in February 2016, including Jaguar Land Rover, were at 99,842 nos., higher by 17%, over February 2015.

Maruti Suzuki India: Maruti Suzuki India Ltd has missed a deadline it had set for introducing the light commercial vehicle (LCV) segment citing the ongoing resistance against diesel vehicles, reports a financial newspaper.

ONGC: ONGC reportedly said it will finalise "a multi- billion dollar investment plan" for the 98/2 fields of D5 Block in the KG Basin by the month-end or early April.

JSW Steel: JSW Steel’s production of crude steel in February has gone up 7% to 10.13 lakh tonnes as against 9.47 lakh tonnes in the same period a year ago.

Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories: Dr. Reddy’s Lab and TR-Pharmin announced a strategic collaboration agreement involving 3 biosimilar products. These products will be registered and subsequently commercialised as part of this agreement by TR-Pharm in Turkey.

Bhushan Steel: The company has received the environment clearance for its Rs.30 billion project to set up a pellet unit with a production capacity of 7mn tonnes per annum (MTPA) in Odisha.

Apollo Hospitals Enterprise: The pharma company has completed the acquisition of the majority stake in Guwahati based Assam Hospitals Ltd.

NMDC: The company has raised the lump price by over 8%to Rs. 1,950 per tonne effective March 11, its first hike for the higher grade of the ore since July, 2014.

Future Consumer Enterprise: Future Supply Chain Solutions Ltd (FSC) has created an e-commerce vertical and is scaling up operations to cater to e-commerce biggies like Snapdeal and Pepperfry, reports a business daily.

United Breweries Holdings Ltd: United Breweries Holdings Ltd (UBHL) is facing as many as 8 winding-up petitions from 8 banks and financial institutions - including BNP Paribas and SBI - in various courts for failing to honour corporate guarantees of Rs. 7,256 crore provided to the defunct Kingfisher Airlines, reports a financial newspaper.

IDBI Bank: IDBI Bank employees have decided to go on a four-day nation-wide strike from 28th March to oppose the Government's move to dilute its stake in the public sector bank, reports a business daily.

Britannia: Britannia Industries Ltd. is three months away from taking a call on ramping up the dairy business, Managing Director Varun Berry has been quoted as saying by a business daily.

HCC: The company bagged a award Rs. 635 crore contract by NTPC to construct Head Race Tunnel (balance works) for Tapovan Vishnugad Hydro-electric Power Project on the River Dhauliganga in Chamoli District of Uttarakhan.

IOC: A whopping 51,000 tonnes of naphtha has been sold by the Indian Oil Corp (IOC) from late March to early April at rarely seen discount levels, says a Reuters report.

Karnataka Bank: The bank enters into a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with CNX Corporation Limited (CCL) in order to expand its storage facilities to farmers and finance against the warehouse receipts (WHR).

Reliance Power: Reliance Power Ltd on Friday moved the Delhi high court, seeking permission to continue mining coal in excess of what is permitted by the Centre, from its Moher and Moher-Amlohri blocks in Madhya Pradesh. 

NMDC increases iron ore lump prices

Report says that this is the first hike for the higher grade of the ore in over one-and-a-half years.

NMDC has raised the lump price by a little over 8% to Rs 1,950 per tonne effective March 11, according to reports.

Report says that this is the first hike for the higher grade of the ore in over one-and-a-half years.

The firm also raised prices for iron ore fines by 10 percent to Rs 1,710 per tonne for this month. 

NMDC Ltd ended at Rs. 92.9, down by Rs. 0.25 or 0.27% from its previous closing of Rs. 93.15 on the BSE.

The scrip opened at Rs. 92 and touched a high and low of Rs. 94.15 and Rs. 91 respectively. A total of 2158008(NSE+BSE) shares were traded on the counter. The current market cap of the company is Rs. 36832.06 crore.

The BSE group 'A' stock of face value Rs. 1 touched a 52 week high of Rs. 139.4 on 13-Apr-2015 and a 52 week low of Rs. 75.2 on 12-Feb-2016. Last one week high and low of the scrip stood at Rs. 99 and Rs. 90.75 respectively.

The promoters holding in the company stood at 80 % while Institutions and Non-Institutions held 17.56 % and 2.43 % respectively.

The stock traded below its 200 DMA.

Sensex, Nifty to open on a positive note

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Sunday said that the Government was hopeful of passing the Goods & Services Tax (GST) bill in the second half of the budget session, which will resume on April 20. Rupee, oil and FII numbers will remain in focus. 

Though indices were unable to find direction for most part of last week, Friday’s rally is set to continue today. Market-participants will keenly await February CPI and WPI data scheduled today. Street expects inflation to cool down in February, giving RBI room to cut rates further. Given the upbeat mood, market may choose to ignore the Jan IIP data released after market close on Friday. Quashing the expectation of marginal industrial recovery, IIP decelerated for the third straight month in January, hurt by de-growth of manufacturing sector, which was impacted to an extent by the Chennai floods.

The outlook is a positive start. Investors may prefer to hold on to their portfolio even as Nifty approaches the resistance zone of 7600. Nearly 30 companies will announce interim dividends today. Asian markets are upbeat. Rupee, oil and FII numbers will remain in focus.

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Sunday said that the Government was hopeful of passing the Goods & Services Tax (GST) bill in the second half of the budget session, which will resume on April 20.  The GST bill, which has received the approval of the Lok Sabha, is stuck in the Rajya Sabha. The GST bill was introduced in the Rajya Sabha in the monsoon session of parliament last year but it could not passed due to stiff opposition.

Last week, the Parliament approved the Aadhaar Bill, which provides statutory support to the Unique Identification Number (UIN), and will help in the management of subsidies and other government benefits. The Real Estate bill has also been approved by the Rajya Sabha.

Reserve Bank Governor Raghuram Rajan reportedly said the economy is recovering, but the process of recovery is volatile. The RBI chief described index of industrial production (IIP) numbers as "certainly somewhat disappointing".

A Parliamentary panel is expected to meet today to discuss the controversial land acquisition bill of 2015, reports a financial newspaper.

DBS Group Holdings is planning to acquire Royal Bank of Scotland Group's Indian onshore operations for about Rs 1,000 crore, says report.

Maruti Suzuki India Ltd has missed a deadline it had set for introducing the light commercial vehicle (LCV) segment citing the ongoing resistance against diesel vehicles, reports a financial newspaper.

In the last fortnight, State Bank of India (SBI), on behalf of itself and other consortium lenders, has put three large loans aggregating to INR 20,769 crore on the block, reports a business daily.

Reliance Power Ltd on Friday moved the Delhi high court, seeking permission to continue mining coal in excess of what is permitted by the Centre, from its Moher and Moher-Amlohri blocks in Madhya Pradesh.

India has been ranked 22nd out of 60 counties in the Best Countries Report 2015. The countries were ranked based on the data from a proprietary perception survey developed by U.S. News, BAV Consulting and the Wharton School of University of Pennsylvania.

Britannia Industries Ltd. is three months away from taking a call on ramping up the dairy business, Managing Director Varun Berry has been quoted as saying by a business daily. -

Chief economic adviser Arvind Subramanian reportedly said that India cannot have a unique model which is export-led and not just uniquely focused on manufacturing if it were to grow at 8 per cent to 10 per cent.

India FINSEC Limited has sold total 230,000 shares of ARYAMAN, at a price of Rs. 15.7 to Mukesh Babulal Shah in a bulk deal valued at Rs. 0.36 crore.

Shernaz Firoze Vakil has purchased total 257,000 shares of DAICHI at a price of Rs. 335 from Chemicals and Ferro Alloys Private Limited in a block deal valued at Rs. 8.6 crore.