HDFC Bank, Bajaj Finance lead as Nifty50 climbs to fresh record above 26,300

The Nifty50 index soared to a new all-time high of 26,310.45 in Thursday’s trading session, buoyed by strong buying interest across heavyweights in financials, IT, infrastructure, and consumption-linked stocks.

The broad-based optimism in the market was reflected in the positive performance of 24 of the 50 index constituents, with several frontline stocks delivering solid percentage gains.

The rally was underpinned by strength in domestic institutional flows and sector-specific momentum, with financials and engineering names leading the charge. The positive breadth helped the index scale fresh peaks, despite marginal pressure from select heavyweights.

Top gainers

Bajaj Finance emerged as one of the strongest performers, rising 2.94% in the session. The stock’s momentum was supported by sustained interest in non-banking financial companies.Larsen & Toubro (L&T) added 1.84%, contributing significantly to the index’s upward movement as infrastructure-linked plays remained in focus.Bajaj Finserv rose 1.28%, continuing the broader uptrend in financial services.HDFC Bank climbed 1.18%, while ICICI Bank was up 1.1%, extending gains in the banking space.Hindustan Unilever advanced 1.03%, as select FMCG names saw buying interest.Shriram Finance also posted gains of 1.06%, further boosting sentiment in the NBFC segment.

Other positive contributors

A number of key Nifty stocks posted modest gains under the 1% mark but still contributed positively to the index movement. These include Infosys (0.67%), HCLTech (0.56%), Asian Paints (0.57%), Indigo (0.2%), Bajaj Auto (0.4%), Tech Mahindra (0.43%), and Axis Bank (0.19%).

Additional contributors like Sun Pharma, Titan, ITC, Adani Ports, BEL, and Cipla also closed in the green, albeit with more muted percentage increases ranging from 0.12% to 0.57%.

Lagging stocks

Despite the sharp upward move, 26 stocks ended in the red, though most of the losses were relatively mild. The biggest loser on the index was Eicher Motors, which declined 2.13%, followed by SBI Life down 0.77%, ONGC at 1.05%, and Grasim lower by 0.56%.Reliance Industries, SBI, Maruti Suzuki, Ultratech Cement, JSW Steel, Apollo Hospitals, and Adani Enterprises saw declines ranging from 0.2% to 0.91%, but their impact on the overall index movement was limited by the strength of gainers.

Also read: JPMorgan sees Nifty50 at 30,000 by 2026 in bullish India outlook(Disclaimer: Recommendations, suggestions, views and opinions given by the experts are their own. These do not represent the views of The Economic Times)