Nifty set to open at record high, ICICI Bank, PNB, REC in focus

Indian equity benchmarks are expected to hit new highs on Monday, as indicated by Nifty futures traded on GIFT Nifty in GIFT City, Gandhinagar. GIFT Nifty futures surged by 112 points or 0.45 per cent, reaching 25,063, suggesting that the Nifty index would cross the 25,000-mark for the first time.

Here are key stocks to watch out for:

ICICI Bank: The second-largest private sector lender in India reported a net profit of Rs 11,059 crore, marking a 15 per cent increase from Rs 9,648 crore in the same period last year. The bank's net interest income (NII) rose by 7 per cent to Rs 19,552 crore. ICICI Bank's asset quality also showed improvement, with its gross non-performing assets (NPA) as a percentage of total advances slightly improving to 2.15 per cent from 2.16 per cent in the previous quarter.

REC Ltd: For Q1, REC reported a 16.6 per cent increase in profit to Rs 3,460.2 crore from Rs 2,968 crore. Revenue also rose by 17.8 per cent to Rs 13,078.7 crore compared to Rs 11,103.9 crore last year.

Punjab National Bank (PNB): PNB's Q1 standalone profit spiked by 159 per cent to Rs 3,251.5 crore from Rs 1,255.4 crore. Net interest income increased by 10.2 per cent to Rs 10,476.3 crore. The bank's provisions fell significantly to Rs 1,312.3 crore from Rs 3,965.3 crore. Gross NPA improved to 4.98 per cent from 5.73 per cent, and net NPA declined to 0.60 per cent from 0.73 per cent.

Dr Reddy’s Laboratories: The pharmaceutical company reported a slight decrease in profit by 1 per cent to Rs 1,392 crore. However, revenue grew by 14 per cent to Rs 7,672.7 crore. EBITDA increased by 1.06 per cent to Rs 2,159.9 crore, but the EBITDA margin dropped to 28.2 per cent from 31.7 per cent.

NTPC: The energy giant reported a 10.9 per cent increase in profit to Rs 4,511 crore, with revenue rising by 13.5 per cent to Rs 44,419.2 crore. EBITDA jumped by 9.5 per cent to Rs 12,446.6 crore, though the EBITDA margin fell slightly to 28 per cent from 29 per cent.

SBFC Finance: The financial institution reported a 67.6 per cent increase in profit to Rs 78.7 crore, with net interest income growing by 43.8 per cent to Rs 202.7 crore.

Jammu & Kashmir Bank: The bank's profit increased by 27.3 per cent to Rs 415.5 crore, with revenue rising by 6.7 per cent to Rs 1,369.2 crore. Gross NPA dropped to 3.91 per cent from 4.08 per cent, and net NPA fell to 0.76 per cent from 0.79 per cent.

KEC International: KEC's profit jumped by 107 per cent to Rs 87.6 crore, with revenue increasing by 6.3 per cent to Rs 4,511.9 crore. The board reappointed Vimal Kejriwal as MD & CEO for one year and approved raising funds up to Rs 4,500 crore, issuance of NCDs worth Rs 1,500 crore, and the transfer of the cables business to its subsidiary.

Spandana Sphoorty Financial: The company's profit plunged by 53.8 per cent to Rs 51.3 crore, despite net interest income increasing by 43 per cent to Rs 416.9 crore.

SBI Cards and Payment Services: SBI Cards reported a slight profit increase of 0.2 per cent to Rs 594.5 crore, with revenue rising by 11.4 per cent to Rs 4,358.6 crore.

Jaiprakash Power Ventures: The company's profit jumped by 82 per cent to Rs 348.5 crore, with revenue increasing by 2.7 per cent to Rs 1,754.7 crore.

Power Grid Corporation of India: The company saw a decline in profit by 3.7 per cent to Rs 3,412.2 crore, and revenue slipped by 1.7 per cent to Rs 10,068.2 crore. EBITDA dropped by 2.9 per cent to Rs 8,744.1 crore, with the EBITDA margin falling to 86.8 per cent from 87.9 per cent.

IDFC First Bank: The bank's profit declined by 11 per cent to Rs 680.7 crore, while net interest income surged by 25.4 per cent to Rs 4,694.9 crore. Provisions increased to Rs 994.4 crore from Rs 476.2 crore. Gross NPA rose to 1.90 per cent from 1.88 per cent, while net NPA slightly declined to 0.59 per cent from 0.6 per cent.

InterGlobe Aviation (IndiGo): The airline reported an 11.7 per cent decrease in profit to Rs 2,728.8 crore, despite revenue rising by 17.3 per cent to Rs 19,570.7 crore. EBITDAR increased by 11.5 per cent to Rs 5,811 crore, but the EBITDAR margin declined to 29.7 per cent from 31.2 per cent.

Bandhan Bank: The bank's profit surged by 47.5 per cent to Rs 1,063.5 crore, with net interest income rising by 20.6 per cent to Rs 3,005 crore. Gross NPA increased to 4.23 per cent from 3.84 per cent, and net NPA rose to 1.15 per cent from 1.11 per cent.

Sumitomo Chemicals: The company reported a 105.4 per cent increase in profit to Rs 126.7 crore, with revenue rising by 15.8 per cent to Rs 838.9 crore.

Zen Technologies: The tech firm saw a significant profit surge of 111.5 per cent to Rs 79.5 crore, with revenue jumping by 80 per cent to Rs 254.6 crore.

Multi Commodity Exchange of India (MCX): MCX's profit increased by 26.2 per cent to Rs 110.9 crore, with revenue rising by 29.4 per cent to Rs 234.4 crore.