Tale of the Tape 

Good evening everyone. Markets barely moved.

Nifty and Sensex ended flat after not moving too much. They did (barely) manage to snap a three-day losing streak. Midcaps (+0.3%) and Smallcaps (+0.4%) fared a little better. The advance-decline ratio was in favour of the bulls (3:2). Checkout the Stocktwits Sentiment Meter:

It was a mixed-bag kinda day for sectors. FMCG (+0.4%) and Auto (+0.4%) saw some buying. PSU Banks (-0.9%) and Energy (-0.4%) witnessed selling pressure.

Amazon has forayed into quick commerce! Read our top story for how it will affect Zomato and Swiggy.

Vishal Mega Mart’s Rs 8,000-cr IPO opened today. Check out our analysis below to help you decide whether to subscribe.

Bajaj Finance, PNC Infratech and Awfis Space Solutions saw big moves. Look at their charts below to find out why.

Cement stocks gained after hiking prices by +4% in December. Dalmia Bharat, JK Cement and Star Cement were up 2-4%. PS - CLSA sees UltraTech Cement as its top pick in the sector.

Senco Gold (-1%) was in focus after launching its Rs 500 cr QIP; the floor price is at a 2% discount to Tuesday’s close.

Kernex Microsystems was locked in a 5% upper circuit after winning a Rs 2,000 cr order from the Indian Railways.

Aurionpro Solutions gained +8% after partnering with a “leading” Saudi Arabia bank for its iCashpro+ platform.

Mishtann Foods snapped its 3-day-losing streak and hit a +10% upper circuit after the management claimed SEBI’s recent actions were “unsustainable” in law.

Mobikwik IPO was subscribed 5x on Day 1 of bidding.

Here are the closing prints:

Stock
Quick Commerce: The New Battleground!

Swiggy (-5%) and Zomato (-2%) were jittery after Amazon said it was FINALLY entering India’s quick commerce (QC) market. ICYMI - the QC sector has gone from $100 million in sales in 2020 to $6 billion projected for 2024. This is big money, so naturally there’s a lot at stake.

A quick rundown first. Amazon will start with pilot trials in Bangalore. India boss Samir Kumar said they are targeting 15 min deliveries initially. Amazon is late AF to the party; its India ops recently had a management change, so it’s clear that priorities are shifting. FYI - Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance has also started the pivot to QC in the last few months after JioMart’ initial failure.

Obviously, this is a huge sentiment hit for Swiggy & Zomato. But not all is lost:

1) Amazon and Reliance have billions to burn, but refashioning existing store networks & retraining their delivery fleets will take time. Even now, both firms are looking at just 15-min deliveries. Compare that to Instamart’s 8-min median delivery time & Blinkit’s 11-min. Swiggy and Zomato are straight-up category creators and catching up to them will NOT be easy.

2) Ambani and Bezos have to worry about cannabalisation. Some 15-min orders will take away business from Reliance Retail and hurt its physical stores. It's a screwed-up Catch 22 situation. Just look at D-Mart’s urban stores which have been hit by QC players. It’s trying to turn things around with ‘DMart Ready’, but it’s not working yet. PS - Goldman Sachs cut its DMart target price to Rs 3,425 p/sh today; -8% downside from current levels.

3) The big thing to watch out for is a price war. Swiggy and Zomato have been looking to cut back on subsidies, raise platform fees and profitability. If Reliance goes full scorched earth, things could get dicey; Amazon is unlikely to do so after years of predatory pricing allegations.

Stocktwits Specials
What Next For Adani Stocks?

Adani Group stocks have been super volatile recently following the bribery allegations. But, the storm seems to have passed after a series of statements and clarifications by the Group. Does that make it an opportunity to buy Adani stocks or should you avoid catching a falling knife? Check out our latest video to know more.