Stock Market Highlights: Sensex crashes 1,236 pts, Nifty 50 ends below 25,500; all sectors in red

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Stock Market Today Highlights: Indian benchmark indices ended lower on 19th February, abruptly snapping a three-day winning streak in response to cautious global cues.

Despite a strong start, the indices quickly erased early gains within the first hour and continued to drift downward throughout the session. Investor sentiment was notably impacted by the latest Fed minutes, which clouded the rate-cut outlook.

Additionally, a sharp rise in crude prices and heightened tensions between the US and Iran intensified concerns over inflation and market volatility. The weakening of the Indian Rupee and a decrease in Foreign Institutional Investor (FII) participation, driven by holidays, further pressured the market, alongside necessary profit booking after the recent rally.

By the close of trading, the Sensex plummeted by 1,236.11 points (1.48%) to 82,498.14, while the Nifty 50 dropped 365 points (1.41%) to 25,454.35.

The Realty, Media, and Auto sectors led the losses, with all indices finishing in negative territory. Broader markets mirrored this trend; the Nifty Midcap index fell by 1.6%, and the Nifty Small-cap index recorded a decline of 1.3%.

Stock Market Today LIVE: According to Jateen Trivedi, VP Research Analyst - Commodity and Currency, LKP Securities, gold traded positive after U.S.–Iran talks failed to yield a constructive outcome, reigniting military tensions and prompting fresh safe-haven buying. However, gains remained capped near 156000rs 500rs gains as delayed rate cut expectations and profit booking at major zone limited upside momentum.

"On the technical front, resistance is seen in the $5,000–$5,025 zone on Comex and ₹1,57,500– ₹1,58,500 on MCX, while support is placed near $4,925 and ₹1,52,000. Volatility is likely to persist amid geopolitical headlines and Fed rate outlook cues," said Trivedi.

Stock Market Today LIVE: According to Rupak De, Senior Technical Analyst at LKP Securities, the Bank Nifty has formed a bearish engulfing pattern on the daily chart, suggesting a potential reversal or at least a pause following the recent rise.

The bullish trend appears to be waning after the formation of a large red candle on the daily chart. The RSI has entered a bearish crossover and is trending lower, indicating weakening momentum.

Overall, the sentiment looks weak. On the lower end, support is seen at 60,500/60,000, while on the higher end, resistance is placed at 61,200.

Stock Market Today LIVE: Oil and Natural Gas Corporation Ltd (ONGC), HDFC Life Insurance, and Hindalco Industries Ltd.

Stock Market Today LIVE: Let's take a look at five key factors that could be behind the stock market crash on Thursday:

1. Profit booking after recent gains
2. Fed's mixed signals weigh on sentiment
3. Focus stays on US-Iran
4. An uptick in crude oil prices
5. Lack of immediate positive triggers

Stock Market Today LIVE: According to Rupak De, Senior Technical Analyst at LKP Securities, the Nifty 50 erased the preceding three sessions’ gains in just one session, reversing the improving sentiment amid rising US–Iran tensions. The index slipped back below the 50DMA as well as the 21EMA in one go. The 200DMA is now positioned nearby and appears vulnerable.

Follow-up selling on Friday or Monday could lead to a breakdown below the 200DMA, which may reactivate the bearish trend. On the lower end, support is placed at 25,330/25,000, while on the higher end, resistance is seen at 25,650.

Stock Market Today LIVE: Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Investments Limited - said -"The bears took charge of the Indian market as rising geopolitical tensions between the US and Iran unsettled global sentiment leading to a broad based sell-off. Brent crude surged to its YTD high, exacerbating inflationary concerns and triggering heightened market volatility on fear of bottlenecking of Strait of Hormuz.

At the same time uncertainty surrounding the US Fed’s rate-cut trajectory and continued weakness in the INR impacted the domestic market. Sell-off intensified due to low FII participation because of Lunar New Year holiday across key Asian markets and a non-settlement day on account of a regional banking holiday in India."

On Thursday, the Nifty 50 and Sensex indexes fell sharply after a big selloff, ending a three-day winning streak. This drop wiped out ₹7.55 lakh crore in investor wealth and reduced the total market value of the BSE to about ₹464 lakh crore.

Stock Market Today LIVE: Sensex tumbles 1,236.11 points to settle at 82,498.14; Nifty 50 slumps 365 points to 25,454.35

The Indian stock market slumped on Thursday amid heavy selling across the board. The Sensex crashed 1,140.44 points, or 1.36%, to trade at 82,593.81, while the Nifty 50 was down 333.55 points, or 1.29%, at 25,485.80.

The recovery in frontline IT largecap names appears more technical than structural at this stage. After a sharp selloff, short covering and valuation comfort typically trigger a bounce. However, the underlying concerns that led to the correction; the evolving impact of agentic AI on traditional service models have not disappeared overnight. Investors should differentiate between tactical rebounds and durable bottom formation. That said, we believe the real alpha opportunity lies beyond generic IT services. Multibaggers are likely to emerge from IP-led, niche technology businesses with strong domain depth in mission critical areas with sticky enterprise relationships. For long-term investors, stock selection remains key to making the most from such a turbulent phase in the IT sector, said Prasenjit Paul, Equity Research Analyst at Paul Asset & Fund Manager at 129 Wealth Fund.

ONGC and OIL India shares jumped up to 6% after crude oil prices extended rally. ONGC share price surged as much as 4.5%, while OIL India share price gained as much as 6.38% amid strong buying momentum. Brent oil prices traded above $71 per barrel.

The Indian stock market traded sharply lower on Thursday afternoon as bears tightened grip on Dalal Street, with both the benchmark indices slipping over 1% each. The Sensex traded 881.90 points, or 1.05%, lower at 82,852.35, while the Nifty 50 was down 248.70 points, or 0.96%, at 25,570.65.

Stock Market Today LIVE: Foreign Portfolio Investors (FPIs) dumped Indian information technology (IT) stocks worth nearly ₹11,000 crore in the first half of February, amid mounting concerns over artificial intelligence (AI)-led disruption in the sector. FPIs were net sellers of Indian IT shares to the tune of ₹10,956 crore between February 1 and 15, according to data from the National Securities Depository Limited (NSDL). This follows FPI outflows of ₹1,835 crore from the IT sector in January 2026.

As a result, total FPI investment in IT stocks declined nearly 16% to ₹4,48,938 crore as of February 15, 2026, down from ₹5,33,953 crore at the end of January.

Today’s market weakness largely reflects tactical profit-taking rather than any meaningful deterioration in underlying fundamentals. The intensity of the move indicates active unwinding of short-term positions and leveraged trades, not a structural shift in investor sentiment.

Several factors appear to have aligned. Traders booked profits after recent gains, a common pattern once momentum phases mature. At the same time, global cues turned cautious amid lingering uncertainty around the path of US interest rates, which typically tempers risk appetite toward emerging markets. Elevated crude prices and synchronized weakness across cyclical sectors such as financials, metals, autos, and consumption further weighed on sentiment, said Harshal Dasani, Business Head, INVasset PMS.

Crucially, market internals suggest rotation rather than distress. The decline has been widespread yet orderly, with selective resilience in defensives and technology counters, implying portfolio rebalancing instead of panic selling. Viewed in context, such phases of consolidation are characteristic of ongoing bull cycles, where periodic corrections help absorb excess froth and strengthen the durability of the broader trend, he added.

Large-cap IT stock Infosys is a great illustration of the power of long-term investing. A modest ₹1 lakh investment at Infosys’ listing in June 1993, when the shares were priced at ₹145 would have turned to ₹16.7 crore today. The IT stock was listed at ₹145, which means a ₹1 lakh investment would have fetched around 689 shares at the time.

Stock Market Today LIVE: Post listing, Kwality Wall’s India share price has faced valuation pressure, primarily due to subdued sentiment surrounding the ongoing open offer at an ~29% discount to the listed price, as well as trading restrictions following Kwality Wall’s India’s placement in the T-Group, said Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Investments.

Additionally, sequential margin pressures across peers and the inherently seasonal nature of the ice cream business have weighed on near-term performance. The open offer by Magnum Ice Cream Company is part of Unilever’s larger plan to carve out and build a standalone global ice cream platform. While near-term headwinds and competitive intensity remain, the company’s focused category presence, strong global parentage, established brand equity, and scalable operating model position it well for sustained growth. These factors may help support a more favourable valuation trajectory over the medium to long term, he added.

Investors lost about ₹4 lakh crore as the overall market capitalisation of BSE-listed firms dropped to nearly ₹468 lakh crore during the day from ₹472 lakh crore in the previous session. Profit booking after the recent rally, and US Federal Reserve’s mixed signals are among key factors why Indian stock market is falling today.

Barring Infosys, TCS and Titan Company, all other stocks in Sensex were trading in the red.

Markets are witnessing some profit booking after three consecutive sessions of gains, but this does not yet signal a confirmed trend reversal. The Nifty 50 continues to hold above the crucial 25,150 – 25,200 support zone, which remains the key level to watch. Momentum indicators like RSI have recovered from oversold territory and are hovering near neutral levels, suggesting consolidation rather than fresh weakness, said Drumil Vithlani, Technical Analyst at Bonanza.

As long as the Nifty 50 index sustains above 25,150, the broader recovery structure remains intact with potential to retest 26,000 – 26,200. However, a decisive break below support could trigger renewed selling pressure and open the door towards 24,800 in the near term, he added.

Stock Market Today LIVE: SpiceJet has received a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for the induction of 10 aircraft. This development follows the Board’s approval, announced last week, for a calibrated ramp-up of the fleet to 60 aircraft through a mix of wet and damp leases, along with the phased return to service of existing grounded aircraft.

The airline doubled its capacity in the last quarter, with Available Seat Kilometres (ASKMs) rising from around 55 crore to 105 crore, reflecting a sharp increase in network strength. SpiceJet plans to more than double its capacity during the year, targeting 220 crore Available Seat Kilometres by Winter 2026, while operating over 300 daily flights across its network. SpiceJet share price gained over 2% during the session.

The Indian stock market traded sharply lower, dragged by selling in FMCG, metals, realty and auto stocks. The Sensex slumped 552.91 points, or 0.66%, lower at 83,181.34, while the Nifty 50 was down 160.15 points, or 0.62%, at 25,659.20.

Stock Market Today LIVE: Elara Capital builds in AI-led compression in revenue for Infosys, with 5% revenue growth for FY27E and 6% for FY28E. It expects earnings growth of 7-8% during FY27-28E. The brokerage firm values Infosys shares at 20x from 22x FY28E earnings (10-year mean). Infosys share price has corrected 16.4% in the past month versus the index down 15.4%, a likely threat to revenue growth, which we do not see materializing at this moment. Hence, the brokerage firm revised its rating on Infosys shares to ‘Buy’ from ‘Accumulate’ and cut Infosys share price target price to ₹1,680 apiece from ₹1,770 earlier.

Bitcoin prices briefly slipped to $67,000, triggering long liquidations that pushed price closer to the $66,000 zone. After this, pressure eased and Bitcoin price has been trying to steady itself between $66,500 and $67,000. Meanwhile, whales continue to accumulate. Over the past month, whale balances have increased by more than 200,000 BTC, rising from 2.9 million to over 3.1 million bitcoins. While inflows can signal short-term selling, overall holdings suggest conviction. A similar buildup during the April 2025 correction helped absorb supply and was followed by a strong rally. Also, The January 27–28 FOMC minutes show the Fed adopting a “hawkish pause,” keeping rates steady, while awaiting clearer evidence that inflation is moving sustainably toward 2%, said CoinSwitch Markets Desk.

Elitecon International share price continued its upward trend for the third consecutive session on Thursday, February 19. This surge has coincided with reports indicating that cigarette companies have raised prices to mitigate the effects of a recent excise duty increase. Elitecon International share price today opened at ₹78.70 apiece on the BSE, the stock touched an intraday high of ₹79.31 per share, and an intraday low of ₹76.10 apiece.

Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) share price gained nearly 2% on Thursday, February 19, after the company announced partnership with OpenAI.

The Tata Group, TCS and OpenAI have announced a multi-dimensional strategic partnership that will drive AI-powered innovation across enterprise, consumer, and social sectors.

“This partnership spans multiple high-impact areas, including powering AI-led innovation across Tata Group companies, joint efforts to drive AI transformation across industries globally, and setting up AI infrastructure,” said TCS in a regulatory filing on February 19.

An important takeaway from Q3 results is the comeback of the mid and smallcaps. Improvement in earnings recovery and indications of continuation of this uptrend have brought the mid and smallcaps back to the radar of investors. At the institutional level, there is a trend of selective accumulation of mid and smallcaps. Even mutual funds which had flagged the valuation concerns of the mid and smallcaps have started approaching the segment with optimism. However, even now, largecaps have valuation comfort while mid and smallcaps are trading at much higher valuations, said Dr. VK Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist, Geojit Investments.

Nifty is trading at around 20 times FY27 estimated earnings while the NSE midcap and NSE smallcap indexes are trading at 28 and 24 times estimated FY27 earnings. This makes this market a stock picker’s market. Prospects for financials, autos, capital goods, pharmaceuticals and hotels look good, he added.

Stock Market Today LIVE: The profitability of the banks has improved in Q3FY26 supported by higher Net Interest Income (NII), lower slippages, better recoveries and fee income, said Systematix Institutional Equities.

The Yield on advances contracted for most of the banks as expected but it was largely offset by lower cost of deposits and borrowings. Further, as anticipated, the impact of TD repricing started showing up in the form of accelerated reduction in Cost of deposits (CoD). The full impact of the 25 bps December 2025 repo rate cut is expected to be visible in Q4. This adverse impact is expected to be offset to an extent by continued repricing of stock Term deposits (TD). Majority of the management’s commentary converges on margins to be stable or see a slight dip in Q4 but revive in FY27.

Going forward, the brokerage firm expects the profitability for the banks to remain healthy driven by improved advances growth, lower interest expenses due to ongoing deposit repricing cycle, benefit of lower CRR requirement and normalization of unsecured segment slippages supported by lower MFI slippages.

B L Kashyap and Sons share price rose as much as 9% following the announcement of a new order valued at ₹300 crore from CRC Greens. The project, which involves the construction and supervision of civil and structural works for a group housing project in Greater Noida, Uttar Pradesh, is expected to be completed over approximately 42 months, B L Kashyap and Sons said.

Stock Market Today LIVE: Multi Commodity Exchange of India (MCX) share price surged as much as 3.32% to ₹2,419 apiece after it announced removal of additional margins on gold & silver futures.

Stock Market Today LIVE: Amol Athawale, VP-Technical Research at Kotak Securities, pointed out that after an intraday correction, the Nifty 50 took support near 25,650 and reversed sharply. On the daily charts, it formed a bullish candle. Athawale recommends the following three stocks to buy for the next 1-2 weeks:

> ICICI Bank | Buy at ₹1,408.20 | Target price: ₹1,470 | Stop loss: ₹1,370

> DLF | Buy at ₹642.45 | Target price: ₹690 | Stop loss: ₹620

> Hyundai Motor India | Buy at ₹2,227.60 | Target price: ₹2,370 | Stop loss: ₹2,140

Stock Market Today LIVE: TIL share price hit 20% upper circuit after the company announced plans for fundraising. The small-cap stock jumped as much as 20% to ₹275.20 apiece on the BSE. The rally in TIL share price today was also supported by robust volumes. Around 4 lakh equity shares of TIL changed hands on February 19 as against its one week average trading volume of 49,000 shares, and one month average volumes of 34,000 shares.

The Construction Vehicles manufacturing company, TIL Ltd, said that its board of directors is scheduled to meet on February 23 to consider a fundraising proposal by way of rights issue, preferential allotment or Qualified Institutional Placement (QIP).

Stock Market Today LIVE: The Indian stock market indices succumbed to selling pressure at high levels after opening on a positive note. The Sensex was down 119.92 points, or 0.14%, at 83,614.33, while the Nifty 50 was trading lower by 27.35 points, or 0.11%, at 25,792.00.

Stock Market Today LIVE: HCL Technologies, Coforge, TCS and Infosys led gains in the Nifty IT pack.

Stock Market Today LIVE: Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories entered into a definitive agreement with Mercury Pharma Group Limited (MPGL), a UK-headquartered specialty pharmaceutical company, to acquire its trademarks, Progynova and CycloProgynova, and related assets for India, for $32.15 million. Dr Reddy’s share price was trading over a percent higher.

Stock Market Today LIVE: A look at Sensex heatmap

Stock Market Today LIVE: ONGC, HCL Technologies, Tech Mahindra, Infosys and Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) were the top gainers among Nifty 50 constituents, while InterGlobe Aviation, Kwality Wall’s India, Asian Paints, Nestle India and Trent were the top index losers.

Stock Market Today LIVE: IT, Metals, Pharma lead gains; FMCG, Realty in red

Stock Market Today LIVE: Among sectors, Nifty IT, Nifty Metals, Nifty Pharma, and Nifty PSU Banks were trading in the green, while Nifty FMCG, Nifty Private Bank and Nifty Realty traded lower.

Stock Market Today LIVE: Broader markets supported the upside movement in the Indian stock market today. The Nifty Smallcap 100 index was up 0.13%, while the Nifty Midcap 100 index gained 0.24%. Bank Nifty index traded marginally higher.

Stock Market Today LIVE: The Indian stock market opened higher on Thursday, following upbeat global market cues. The Sensex opened 235.57 points, or 0.28%, higher at 83,969.82, while the Nifty 50 gained 54.00 points, or 0.21%, to open at 25,873.35.

Stock Market Today LIVE: Gold and silver prices on the Multi Commodity Exchange of India (MCX) opened lower on Thursday, following weakness in international bullion prices amid a firm US dollar.

MCX gold rate today for April futures contracts opened lower by ₹629, or 0.40%, at ₹1,55,132 per 10 grams as against its previous close of ₹1,55,761 level. MCX silver price for March futures contracts opened lower by ₹1,829, or 0.74%, at ₹2,42,439 per kg as against its previous close of ₹2,44,268 level.

Stock Market Today LIVE: Indian currency market is closed today on account of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Jayanti.

Stock Market Today LIVE: Regarding stocks to buy today, stock market experts — Sumeet Bagadia, Executive Director at Choice Broking; Ganesh Dongre, Senior Manager of Technical Research at Anand Rathi, recommended these eight intraday stocks for today: Marico, AU Small Finance Bank, Reliance, Tata Tech, and Eternal.

Stock Market Today LIVE: IT Stocks: Technology shares recovered part of their recent losses in overnight deals on Wall Street, as investor sentiment improved following a sharp artificial intelligence AI-led sell-off earlier this month. Indian IT stocks including TCS, Infosys, HCL and others are also likely to be in focus today, February 19 after the rebound in tech stocks last night. In the previous session, the Nifty IT index lost 1.23%.

Stock Market Today LIVE: Sumeet Bagadia, Executive Director at Choice Broking recommended these five breakout stocks to buy today: Senores Pharmaceuticals, ELGI Equipments, Lumax AutoTechnologies, Acutaas Chemicals, and Azad Engineering.

Stock Market Today LIVE: Gift Nifty, US Fed minutes, crude oil prices to gold rates, here are 7 key things that changed for the Indian stock market overnight.

Stock Market Today LIVE: Sensex took support near 83,400 and reversed sharply, and formed a bullish candle on daily charts. Nifty 50 formed a reasonable bull candle on the daily chart with a long lower shadow. In the derivatives segment, heavy put writing at 25,700 and call writing at 26,000 indicate a range-bound bias in the near term.

Stock Market Today LIVE: Hindustan Unilever (HUL), TVS Motor Company, Cochin Shipyard, Jindal Saw, Zydus Lifesciences, NCC, Pace Digitek, and other stocks will be in focus today, on 19 February.

Stock Market Today LIVE: Nifty 50 remains firmly positioned above its 20-, 50-, 100-, and 200-day EMAs, preserving a constructive short-term trend structure. Immediate support is placed around 25,700, which marks a prior resistance zone now acting as support. On the upside, the 25,900 – 26,000 band stands as a key near-term hurdle, representing a psychological barrier along with visible overhead supply and call-writing activity; a decisive close above this region is required to trigger further acceleration, said Ponmudi R, CEO of Enrich Money.

If momentum sustains, the next upside extension could unfold toward 26,300. Momentum indicators remain supportive, with RSI near 54 reflecting a neutral-to-bullish tone and steady improvement, while MACD continues in positive territory. Overall, the structure favors gradual upside continuation, though the broader tone remains mildly positive within a consolidation framework, he added.