Stocks to Watch: Reliance Industries, Canara Bank, HDFC Bank, Mahindra Holidays, Skipper

Reliance Industries: Walt Disney and Reliance Industries have signed a binding agreement to merge their media operations in India, a Bloomberg report quoted people familiar with the matter. The report said billionare Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Industries is expected to own a 61% stake in the merged entity as Disney reassesses its strategy in India amid intense competition. The distribution of shares among the partners could undergo alterations based on the inclusion of Disney's additional local assets at the time of finalizing the deal, the report said. Reliance Industries is also mulling over the acquisition of Tata Play Ltd., a broadcast service provider, in which Disney holds a minority stake.

HDFC Bank: The bank said that it has received approval from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to offload 90 percent of HDFC Credila’s total issued and paid-up share capital, in an exchange filing. On June 20 last year, HDFC Ltd (now merged with HDFC Bank) had disclosed to the exchanges that it had entered into definitive agreements for the potential sale of a 90 percent share in HDFC Credila to a consortium of private equity firms for approximately ₹9,060 crore.

Canara Bank: The public sector bank's board of directors is going to consider a stock split in its meeting scheduled on Monday, 26th February 2024. If approved, this would be the second big corporate event taking place at the PSU bank after a gap of nearly seven years. Canara Bank board had declared Rights Issue on 20th February 2017 and the size of the rights issue was ₹1,124 crore. The bank had informed the exchanges about the board meeting to mull over the stock split proposal on February 7.

Paytm: The advisory committee, formed by Paytm owner One97 Communications after the Reserve Bank of India’s action on its payments bank, is yet to begin deeper conversations to identify any issue, the Press Trust of India reported the head of the panel M. Damodaran as having said on Sunday. “We are an external advisor. At this point they (Paytm) are dealing with RBI," said Damodaran while speaking at the the release of his biography 'The Turmeric Latte' compiled by one of his former colleagues in Sebi (Securities and Exchange Board of India).

IndianOil, ONGC and GAIL (India): State-owned oil and gas companies including IndianOil, ONGC and GAIL (India) have been slapped with fines for the third straight quarter for failing to meet listing norm requirements like not having the requisite number of independent directors, or the mandated woman director in the third quarter ended December 31, 2023, reports said. Stock exchanges have fined oil refining and fuel marketing giants Indian Oil Corporation (IOC), explorers Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) and Oil India  (OIL), gas utility GAIL, and refiners Hindustan Petroleum Corporation (HPCL) and Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Ltd (MRPL), a cumulative ₹32.5 lakh.

Sun Pharma, Lupin Laboratories and Alkem Laboratories: Pharmaceutical products manufactured by Sun Pharma, Lupin Laboratories and Alkem Laboratories are being recalled from the US market, as per a list issued in the weekly enforcement report of the US Food and Drug Administration (USFDA), reports said on Monday, February 25.

Reliance Industries: The conglomerate is planning to set up more than 50 compressed biogas (CBG) plants in the next two years at a cost of over ₹5,000 crore, according to industry executives aware of the development, reports said. At RIL's annual general meeting last August, chairman Mukesh Ambani had announced plans to set up 100 CBG plants in five years. CBG is a green fuel produced from waste or biomass sources. "RIL has tendered out over 50 compressed biogas plants to be set up in the next two years. It will shortly be floating a tender for the remaining plants," said one of the executives.

Mahindra Holidays & Resorts India: The company plans to invest up to ₹4,500 crore in the next three to four years to double its room capacity to 10,000, according to company Managing Director and CEO, Kavinder Singh. Mahindra Holidays & Resorts India is actively pursuing partnerships with state governments besides setting up new resorts, brownfield expansion and acquisitions to achieve the target to increase room count from 5,000 to 10,000 by FY30, reported Economic Times. "We have all the strategies on the table to get from 5,000 to 10,000 rooms. We are well on our way there," Singh told PTI.

Skipper: The manufacturer of power transmission and distribution structures said it has secured an order worth ₹737 crore from Power Grid Corporation of India Limited (PGCIL) for design, supply and construction of a cutting-edge 765 kV transmission line for the central PSU, on Sunday, February 25. The company's director Sharan Bansal highlighted the substantial boost to Skipper's order book in the transmission and distribution landscape, with the year-to-date order intake exceeding ₹3,900 crore. "The orders from PGCIL have notably bolstered our order book in the transmission and distribution (T&D) landscape," said Bansal, as per PTI.

Mankind Pharma: The pharmaceutical company has responded to objections raised by a retail chemists' association regarding its advertisement for the vitamin supplement, HealthOK. The All India Organisation of Chemists and Druggists (AIOCD) had requested the withdrawal of the advertisement, alleging that it implies non-vegetarians are healthier due to its portrayal of actor Ranveer Singh. In a letter dated February 13th, Mankind Pharma addressed the concerns raised by the AIOCD, saying its intent was not to hurt anyone or undervalue the benefits of vegetarian food, as per reports.