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Economic think-tank National Institute of Public Finance and Policy (NIPFP) on Friday said it has estimated India's GDP growth at 7.1 per cent for the current fiscal, using high-frequency models. NIPFP, in a series of tweets, said the Centre is on a fiscal consolidation path through buoyancy in taxes and revenue expenditure compression. The economic think tank said that in 2023-24, states' capex growth is robust due to significant capex transfers from the Centre. While the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and Fitch Ratings have estimated India's growth at 7 per cent, the International Monetary Fund (IMF), S&P Global Ratings and Morgan Stanley projected a 6.8 per cent growth rate for FY25.

Nifty on Friday ended 150 points lower to form a dark cloud cover candlestick on the daily chart, while the weekly one saw a high wave type candle, suggesting consolidation in the near term.Nifty's short-term trend seems to have reversed down after a reasonable rise from the lows. Immediate support is placed at 22,300 and the weakness below this support could trigger more declines. Immediate resistance is at 22,625 levels, Nagaraj Shetti of HDFC Securities said.What should traders do? Here’s what analysts said:Rupak De, LKP SecuritiesNifty remained under selling pressure throughout the session as the index failed to sustain above the crucial level of 22,500. On the daily chart, a dark cloud cover pattern is observed, indicating a potential bearish reversal. Immediate support is at 22,300, below which the Nifty could extend its losses towards 22,000. On the other hand, the level of 22,500 might act as a technical resistance for the Nifty.Jatin Gedia, SharekhanThe Nifty witnessed selling pressure throughout the day and closed weak for the day down ~120 points. On the daily charts, we saw that Nifty faced selling pressure from the resistance zone of 22,560–22,625. Until this zone is not taken out decisively, we can expect the consolidation to continue. On the downside, crucial support is now placed at 22240 – 22200 where support parameters in the form of the 40-day moving average and the 50% Fibonacci retracement level of the rise from 21,777 – 22,626 is placed.(Disclaimer: Recommendations, suggestions, views and opinions given by the experts are their own. These do not represent the views of The Economic Times)

State-owned Bank of Maharashtra (BoM) on Friday reported a 45 per cent jump in its net profit to Rs 1,218 crore for the March quarter, helped by a decline in bad loans and a rise in interest income. The Pune-based lender had earned a net profit of Rs 840 crore in the year-ago period. During the quarter, the bank's total income increased to Rs 6,488 crore as against Rs 5,317 crore a year ago, BoM said in a regulatory filing. Interest income grew to Rs 5,467 crore during the period under review, from Rs 4,495 crore in the corresponding quarter a year ago. The bank's board has recommended a dividend of Rs 1.40 per share or 14 per cent of Rs 10 face value out of the net profits for the year ended March 31, 2024. On the asset quality side, the bank's Gross Non-Performing Assets (NPAs) were reduced to 1.88 per cent of gross advances as of March 31, 2024, from 2.47 per cent by the end of March 2023. Net NPAs also came down to 0.20 per cent of the advances from 0.25 per cent at the end of 2024. The fall in bad loans ratio helped cut the provisions towards NPAs for Q4FY24 to Rs 457 crore as compared with Rs 545 crore a year ago. The board also approved raising of capital up to Rs 7,500 crore through a Follow-on Public Offer (FPO) or rights issue, Qualified Institutional Placement (QIP) issue, or any other mode or through issue of BASEL III Compliant Tier I and Tier II Bonds or such other securities as may be permitted under applicable laws etc, it said. Provision Coverage Ratio stood to 98.34 per cent as on March 30, 2024. However, the capital adequacy ratio of the bank declined to 17.38 per cent from 18.07 per cent at the end of FY23.

Nestle India’s share price fell on Friday to the day’s low of Rs 2,511.60, dropping 2% after the company declared its Q4 results on Thursday. The standalone net profit rose 27% year-on-year (YoY) to Rs 934 crore for the March quarter as compared to Rs 737 crore a year ago.Revenue rose 9% to Rs 5,268 crore, up from Rs 4,831 crore, the FMCG major said in a regulatory filing.The company has also informed the exchanges about changing the financial year from “1st January - 31st December” cycle to “1st April - 31st March” cycle. Accordingly, the current financial year of the company stands extended up to March 31, 2024, covering a period of 15 months commencing from January 1, 2023, to March 31, 2024, comprising five quarters.Here’s what brokerages have to say about the stock performance:Goldman SachsGoldman Sachs sees the March quarter as a strong one driven by margin expansion. They believe that gross margins may not sustain as input cost inflation is increasing. Nestle could benefit from Dr Reddy's medical representative network to grow the business.Goldman Sachs maintained a neutral rating on Nestle India but raised the target price to Rs 2,550 from Rs 2,500 earlier.Motilal OswalThe company has been building its strategy around its RURBAN concept. The distribution penetration has been benefiting Nestle India across most of its categories. Packaged food penetration has improved in the tier-2 and rural markets. The brokerage firm states that Nestle India's portfolio is relatively safe from local competition and thus, the operating costs have not accelerated, unlike its FMCG peers. The brokerage firm believes the company will be able to sustain its EBITDA margin at 25% for FY25/FY26.Motial Oswal reiterated their ‘neutral’ rating for the stock, downgrading the target price to Rs 2,400.Kotak Institutional Equities“Nestle India’s revenue/EBITDA growth of 9%/21% in the march quarter was slightly ahead of our estimates. The overall operating performance was decent in the context of weak consumption and the steep inflation seen in coffee prices. Nestle has launched two new businesses: Nutraceuticals JV with Dr Reddy’s and Nespresso’s entry into India. These forays hold LT promise but are unlikely to move the needle in the foreseeable future.”With this, KIE rated Nestle India with a ‘buy’ call and a target price of Rs 2,550.Emkay GlobalGoing ahead amid inflationary stress, the brokerage firm largely retains its estimates; they see FY25-26 topline & earnings CAGR at 11% each. Given that the positives are in the price, the stock offers little upside despite the generous valuations.Emkay retained a ‘reduce’ rating for the stock with a target price of Rs 2,600.ICICI SecuritiesICICI Securities stated that their earnings estimate changes are not comparable due to the change from CY to FY for the company, modeling revenue / EBITDA / PAT CAGR of 10 / 11 / 11 (%) over FY24-26. The brokerage firm stated an upside risk of faster-than-anticipated recovery in the demand environment while the downside risk of higher-than-expected inflation in key raw material prices exists.Recently, the stock price of Nestle India dipped aggressively after the multinational FMCG major was found adding sugar to baby food products sold in India but not in Europe and UK. The fall in shares of Nestle, regarded as a long-term compounding machine, was the worst single-day drop in the last 3 years.Following the revelation, the health ministry was also said to be concerned about the issue.Also read: Smallcap boom is back! FIIs, mutual funds team up to shop at 200 such counters(Disclaimer: Recommendations, suggestions, views and opinions given by the experts are their own. These do not represent the views of The Economic Times)