FIIs recorded net purchases of ₹502.63 crore, buying equities worth ₹17,520.49 crore and selling shares worth ₹17,017.86 crore. This marked the third consecutive session of net buying by FIIs, following purchases worth ₹1,593.53 crore on Tuesday.
DIIs were considerably more aggressive, recording net purchases of ₹6,425.16 crore. They bought equities worth ₹17,710.07 crore, while sales stood at ₹11,284.91 crore.
DII buying rose sharply from Tuesday, when domestic institutions were net buyers to the tune of just ₹230.26 crore.
The institutional buying came as Indian equity markets ended mixed on Wednesday, with the Nifty failing to hold the 24,300 level. The Sensex fell 183 points to 77,473, while the Nifty declined 127 points to 24,208. The Nifty Bank outperformed, gaining 270 points to 57,784, while the midcap index slipped 62 points to 64,101.
Market breadth favoured advances despite the decline in the midcap index. Financial stocks outperformed, with Kotak Mahindra Bank extending its recent gains to close 4% higher as the top Nifty gainer. HDFC Life and SBI Life also gained over 1% each.
Among other major movers, UltraTech Cement rose 2% on reports of a price increase. Hind Zinc surged over 6% following a positive brokerage note, while SAIL, Vedanta and NMDC gained between 3% and 6%.
IT stocks closed off their highs, tracking global cues, with Infosys emerging as the top Nifty loser. Premier Energies fell nearly 4% on heavy volumes, while Varun Beverages and Jubilant FoodWorks declined over 3% each despite positive newsflow.
Avenue Supermarts fell more than 2% after block deals involving over 1% of its equity. Defence stocks ended mixed, with Bharat Forge declining, while Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders and Solar Industries India gained.
DCB Bank rose over 2% after sources said the lender is in talks with private equity firms for a capital infusion.
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