BENGALURU: Indian shares hit lifetime highs for the fifth straight session on Wednesday, buoyed by gains in heavyweight financials and Power Grid, while small-cap stocks fell for a second day.

The Nifty 50 reversed course in the final hour of trade to close 0.25% higher at 26,004.15 points, while the BSE Sensex was up 0.3% at 85,169.87, hitting an all-time high. Both the benchmark indexes had fallen as much as 0.2% earlier in the session.

The Nifty has hit new highs in every session since an outsized U.S. rate cut last week boosted investors’ risk appetite, with nine of the thirteen major sectoral indexes logging gains on the day.

However, the broader small- and mid-caps indexes, which are more domestically-focussed, ended 0.4% and 0.6% lower, respectively, due to a lack of local triggers, analysts said.

“Sector rotation has resulted in buying interest in power, financials and energy stocks … sectors that are cheaper and have not run up lately,” said Deepak Jasani, head of retail research at HDFC Securities.

Indian shares likely to open little changed

Winding up of short positions ahead of the monthly expiry also triggered the small rally on Wednesday, said Prashanth Tapse, senior vice president of research at Mehta Equities.

Power Grid surged 3.9%, extending gains from the previous session, after winning a transmission project. It was the top gainer on the Nifty.

Heavyweight lender HDFC Bank was the biggest boost to the Nifty, rising 0.6%, while smaller rival Axis Bank climbed 2.3%.

Dabur fell 4.4%, leading losses among consumer stocks, after media reports said its top shareholders withdrew from a race to buy a stake in Hindustan Coca-Cola Beverages.