Stocks in the news: NTPC, Tata Steel, HDFC, Tata Motors, CEAT and telcos

Nifty futures on the Singapore Exchange traded 30.5 points, or 0.17 per cent higher at 17,597, signaling that Dalal Street was headed for a positive start on Thursday. Here are a dozen stocks which may buzz the most in today's trade:

NTPC: Damodar Valley Corporation (DVC) has signed a joint venture agreement with NTPC Renewable Energy Ltd, a fully owned subsidiary of the NTPC Limited, for renewable power projects in its command area. Sources said this JV will execute GW size projects.

Tata Steel: The Steel major said it will acquire ferro alloys producing assets of Odisha-based Stork Ferro and Mineral Industries for Rs 155 crore in an all-cash deal. In this regard, an Asset Transfer Agreement has been signed between the two companies.

Axis Bank: American banking major Citi joined a long list of foreign banks that have either exited or cut down on their business presence in India with the sale of its consumer banking business to Axis Bank for Rs 12,325 crore.

HDFC: Markets regulator Sebi disposed of a show cause notice that was issued to Housing Development & Finance Corporation (HDFC) with respect to alleged violations of share transfer agent norms. The watchdog had conducted an inspection of HDFC.

Tata Motors: The homegrown automobile major said TPG Rise Climate has subscribed to 3.75 crore compulsorily convertible preference shares worth Rs 3,750 crore as the first tranche of the proposed investment of Rs 7,500 crore in its passenger electric vehicle business.

CEAT: The tyre maker said that officials of Competition Commission of India (CCI) visited its office for a 'routine enquiry' but denied any wrongdoing in the conduct of the company's business.

Tejas Networks: The Tata Group firm will acquire 64.40 per cent stake in semiconductor firm Saankhya Labs Pvt Ltd for Rs 283.94 crore in an all-cash deal. The initial acquisition of Saankhya shares is expected to close within the next 90 days.

Telecom Stocks: The telecom subscriber base in the country declined to 116.94 crore in January this year, mainly due to the loss of a whopping 93.22 lakh mobile phone users by the largest telecom player Reliance Jio, the latest data released by TRAI. Bharti Airtel was the only net gainer with the addition of 7.14 lakh users of its mobile services.

Godrej Properties: The realty firm said it has acquired a 9 acres land parcel in Pune to develop a housing project with an estimated revenue of Rs 1,400 crore. The project located at Pimpri-Chinchwad in Pune will have a developable potential of about 1.7 million square feet of saleable area, with an estimated revenue potential of about Rs 1,400 crore.

Newgen Software: The IT company plans to double its business partners in the next 18 months to increase its revenue share in the growth markets. The company has direct presence in eight markets and reaches out to a total of 72 countries through system integrators and other partners.

V-Guard Industries: The consumer durable player plans to expand in northern, eastern and western regions of the country as it aims to garner over 60 per cent revenue from these regions in the next five-six years. These regions contribute around 42 per cent of the business of the company.

Nazara Technologies: A subsidiary of the gaming player Nazara Pte Ltd (Nazara Singapore) will invest $2.5 million in BITKRAFT Funds. Out of which $0.875 million will invest upfront while the balance investment amount of $1.625 million will be deployed over a period of three years.

Mangalam Cement: The cement company's player promoter Vidula Consultancy Services acquired 2.26 lakh equity shares in the company via open market transactions. With this, its shareholding in the company stands at 9.92 per cent.

Quess Corp: The board of staffing and technology services player has approved the transfer of digital business undertaking of the company comprising Qjobs, Worq, and Dash as a going concern on a slump sale basis to the company's subsidiary Billion Careers Private Limited (BCPL), for Rs 5.04 crore.