Stocks to buy or sell for short-term: Jay Thakkar of ICICI Sec suggests these three shares to buy in F&O segment

Stock market today: The domestic benchmark indices, Nifty 50 and Sensex, were a little changed on Wednesday as investors paused after a recent surge and looked for more information regarding upcoming US tariffs. As of 12:25 IST, the Nifty 50 was down by 0.29% to reach 23,599.65, while the Sensex slipped into red by 0.47% to 77,697.70.

During the last seven sessions, the indices have gained 5.7%, helping to recover their losses for the year as foreign investments and positive sentiment about domestic economic conditions offered some respite from India's longest downturn in equities in almost three decades.

As per technical analysts, in the F&O segment,on Tuesday, there was a 4.20% rise in open interest for Nifty 50 futures, while Bank Nifty 50 futures saw an increase of 0.35% as the market concluded at 23,669. With the monthly expiry approaching, there is a notable concentration of open interest in the 23,300–23,200 Put strikes, indicating a support zone. In the meantime, new writing in the 23,700–23,800 Call strikes points to immediate resistance at these levels.

Market Outlook by Jay Thakkar, Vice President & Head of Derivatives and Quant Research, ICICI Securities

Nifty 50

Nifty 50 has sharply recovered from the lows of 21,964 and it is back to from where it started its last leg of the fall i.e. at 23,800 levels. Now, from hereon, 23,800 to 24,000 levels may act as a short-term hurdle until the monthly expiry or few trading sessions, hence some consolidation can’t be ruled out.

The overall trend however it positive and it is likely to extend until 24,500 to 24,800 levels. The BFSI segment of the market is looking quite bullish along with that the other beaten down sectors are likely to witness further short covering which will help the Index to 24,500 to 24,800 levels. Now, on the lower side, 23,000 to 22,700 range will again act as a crucial support and till that range is not taken off the overall trend will remain bullish.

The India VIX has cooled off, the CBOE VIX has cooled off, the US Dollar Index has cooled off as well as the Brent Crude oil has cooled off, so overall the downside risk is relatively lower now, hence there is a higher probability of a bounce back from hereon as well. The Index is trading well above its VWAP, its Max pain levels as well as the PCR has improved and its sustaining above 1 and these are bullish factors.

The FII Net long % has also bounced back from an oversold territory, so there has been significant short covering from the FIIs in the Index thus further indicating a trend reversal from down to up. So, until 23,000 to 22,700 range is not broken convincingly on a closing basis, the short-term trend is positive.

Stocks To Buy in the near-term - Jay Thakkar

Jay Thakkar of ICICI Securities recommends buying Kotak Bank April Futures, Bajaj Finance April Futures, and Samvardhana Motherson April Futures.

Buy Kotak Bank April Futures in the range of ₹2,160 to ₹2,140 levels with a stop loss of ₹2,070 for the targets of ₹2,250 and ₹2,320

The stock has provided a significant breakout on the upside after a 4-year long consolidation. There used to be heavy call writing at 2,000 levels, however, once those levels for taken off there was unwinding in calls which further fueled the up move. On the futures front there has been , there has been long built up in the stock and it is one of the few stocks in the markets wherein there is clear breakout with long built up.

Buy Bajaj Finance April Futures in the range of ₹9,060 to ₹9,030 with a stop loss of ₹8,750 for the Targets of ₹9,300 and ₹9,500

The BFSI segment is outperforming and the and it is likely to lead this leg of up move. BajFinance has also broken out of huge consolidation due to short covering as there was short built up in the stock while it was consolidating, however, it witnessed short covering which led to breakout and now there has been clear long built up in the stock. This stock is also amongst the few stocks in the market wherein there is a clean breakout with long built up.

Buy Samvardhana Motherson April Futures in the range of ₹133 to ₹135 with a stop loss of ₹128 Targets ₹145 and ₹152

The stock has been witnessing short covering and with that the stock has reversed from the lower levels. It started the correction with long unwinding and thereafter saw short built up due to which the stock corrected significantly and now it has reached to an oversold territory. The IVs have decreased as well as shorts are getting covered due to which there is a high probability of a bounce back.

Disclaimer: The Research Analyst or his relatives or I-Sec do not have actual/beneficial ownership of 1% or more securities of the subject company, at the end of 25/03/2025 or have no other financial interest and do not have any material conflict of interest.

The views and recommendations provided in this analysis are those of individual analysts or broking companies, not Mint. We strongly advise investors to consult with certified experts before making any investment decisions, as market conditions can change rapidly and individual circumstances may vary.